Egalitarianism and Taxation

Abstract

AbstractEgalitarianism is roughly the idea that people should be more equal than they are in most societies today. Among different versions of egalitarianism, this chapter focuses on social egalitarianism whose ambition is to eliminate relationships of domination and ensure a democratic distribution of power. John Rawls is a key thinker within this tradition, and he has had deep influence on Thomas Piketty’s understanding of distributive justice. It is argued that both hold an ideal that justifies a capital ceiling and a capital floor. Taxation is one of the most important measures to realize this ideal, and progressive taxation of income, inheritance and wealth is likely to be included in schemes to implement such an understanding of what a just society is. However, an egalitarian society will need several other measures in addition to taxation to be realized. Thus, the distinction between predistribution and redistribution is explored. Drawing on Murphy and Nagel, the chapter goes on to discuss whether pre-tax income and distribution of the tax burden are relevant in a theory of justice. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the relationship between the state and the individual and whether social egalitarianism is best realized in a property-owning democracy or under liberal socialism.KeywordsEgalitarianismTaxationRawlsPikettyProperty-owning democracy