The deadweight losses from silliness

My old friend Stuart Levine, who makes a living helping people and businesses minimize their tax liabilities, has two posts [here and here] reflecting on the efficiency costs of the “all taxes bad” meme. In this case, the irresponsible tax-cutting was done by a Democratic governor and legislature, while the high-deadweight-loss “fee raising” is proposed by a governor who used to be one of Newt Gingrich’s footsoldiers.

Author: Mark Kleiman

Professor of Public Policy at the NYU Marron Institute for Urban Management and editor of the Journal of Drug Policy Analysis. Teaches about the methods of policy analysis about drug abuse control and crime control policy, working out the implications of two principles: that swift and certain sanctions don't have to be severe to be effective, and that well-designed threats usually don't have to be carried out. Books: Drugs and Drug Policy: What Everyone Needs to Know (with Jonathan Caulkins and Angela Hawken) When Brute Force Fails: How to Have Less Crime and Less Punishment (Princeton, 2009; named one of the "books of the year" by The Economist Against Excess: Drug Policy for Results (Basic, 1993) Marijuana: Costs of Abuse, Costs of Control (Greenwood, 1989) UCLA Homepage Curriculum Vitae Contact: Markarkleiman-at-gmail.com