Carbon Pricing and Inequality: A Normative Perspective

Abstract Despite broad acceptance among economists, carbon taxes face persistent public resistance. We measure the sources and distribution of welfare losses from unexpected European carbon price changes by estimating their impact on consumer prices, labor income, financial wealth, and government transfers. A 1% carbon-policy-induced increase in energy prices leads to an average welfare loss of about 0.5% of a household’s three-year consumption, primarily driven by indirect labor-income effects.