ABSTRACT

A n u m b e r of proposals for new methods to fight inflation are being opposed, especially by labor organizations and the business community. Included among the old methods to fight inflation are restrictive mon­ etary and fiscal policies, wage and price controls, and exhortation or “jaw­ boning,” all of which have been used in the United States at various times in the past thirty years. Among the new methods are reductions in excise, sales, and payroll taxes; tax-based incomes policies (TIPs); and deregulation, or the elimination of “sacred cows.” This paper ex­ plores possible reasons for opposition to these more recent proposals, with major attention devoted to TIPs.