ABSTRACT

In seeking to dispel an ignorance of Simons’s legacy, the first discoveries are likely to be modern references to the ‘Schanz-Haig-Simons’ measure of income to serve as a tax base. The context motivating Simons’s thinking is important: to secure a coherent rationale for taxation that lends itself to a progressive tax system, without compromising the work ethic. A key consideration lies in weighing the negative impact of progressive taxation upon work incentives. Simons argues that taxation places no inhibitions upon freedoms: businesses may pursue profits, the prosperous may exercise economic power and market competition may determine prices. Given the general poverty of the period in which he is writing, Simons’s primary concern is to achieve greater income equality.