Hmm, I’m apparently misremembering the rationale Pigeau used—certainly including the cost in the producer’s optimization calculation is one part of it, but I thought it was also calculated to compensate or offset the damage from the externality. You’re absolutely right that “tax what you don’t want, subsidize what you do” is a core element of tax theory, but I will still argue that it’s secondary to the core of tax reality, which is that revenue is the real metric of impact.
Hmm, I’m apparently misremembering the rationale Pigeau used—certainly including the cost in the producer’s optimization calculation is one part of it, but I thought it was also calculated to compensate or offset the damage from the externality. You’re absolutely right that “tax what you don’t want, subsidize what you do” is a core element of tax theory, but I will still argue that it’s secondary to the core of tax reality, which is that revenue is the real metric of impact.