The optimal taxation of height: A case study of utilitarian income redistribution

Abstract

Should the income tax include a credit for short taxpayers and a\textbackslashn\textbackslashnsurcharge for tall ones? The standard utilitarian framework for tax\textbackslashn\textbackslashnanalysis answers this question in the affirmative. Moreover, a plausible\textbackslashn\textbackslashnparameterization using data on height and wages implies a substantial\textbackslashn\textbackslashnheight tax: a tall person earning 50,000 should pay 4,500\textbackslashn\textbackslashnmore in tax than a short person. One interpretation is that personal\textbackslashn\textbackslashnattributes correlated with wages should be considered more widely\textbackslashn\textbackslashnfor determining taxes. Alternatively, if policies such as a height\textbackslashntax\textbackslashn\textbackslashnare rejected, then the standard utilitarian framework must fail to\textbackslashn\textbackslashncapture intuitive notions of distributive justice.