Energiesteuern auf Treibstoffe und CO²-Emissionen

The greenhouse effect and global warming are among the major challenges the international community has to face in the 21st century. It has been widely accepted that a significant re duction of greenhouse gas emissions is necessary to limit harmful consequences of climate change, such as droughts, heavy storms or a rise of the sea level. This aim can hardly be a chieved without considering fuel-based transportation, which is responsible for a significant and growing share in worldwide emissions of CO2. According to the double dividend hypothesis, energy taxes on fuel do not only contribute to the reduction of fuel consumption, but also generate positive macroeconomic effects. Based on that hypothesis, this paper analyses an energy tax on fuel as a policy instrument and its possible effects, focussing on Austria within the framework of the European Union. Microeconomic theory and many empirical studies show a high probability that an energy tax can indeed lead to a decrease in fuel consumption. Yet, the very inelastic demand for fuel would require quite a noticeable tax rate in order to obtain a significant impact on CO2 emissions. The resulting macroeconomic effects depend mainly on how the expected tax income is spent. According to the assessments reviewed for this paper, the reduction of labour costs combined with investments in ecological technologies can be regarded as the most promising way to sustain the growth of both employment and the economy. The overall effects of an energy tax on fuel, however, still remain rather uncertain. Other policy measures, like long term spatial planning, might result in being more effective to abate greenhouse gas emissions with low economic costs.