Smart Taxes: An Open Invitation to the Pigou Club

Assignment: In approximately 500 words, summarize the essay, Smart Taxes: An Open Invitation to the Pigou Club, by N. Gregory Mankiw. Be sure to summarize: • Mankiw’s arguments in favor of carbon or gasoline taxes, • His arguments against CAFÉ standards and cap-and-trade policies, • Why the public and politicians seem to be against carbon taxes, and • How Mankiw addresses possible concerns people would have about a carbon or gasoline tax. To Submit: Write your summary in a Word document. Save that document to your own files. Go to the “Reading Assignments Tab” for our course in Moodle. Click “Mankiw Submission” to upload your work. Grading: • A+ Shows deeper understanding. Paper will be clear, concise and correct. • A- The paper is technically correct but quotes heavily from the authors. • B+ The paper is unclear and does not show a full understanding of the reading • B- The paper is unclear and has errors in some places. • C+ The paper is unclear, has errors, is too short to fully describe the reading. • C- The paper is unclear and has errors. There is little correct analysis of the reading. • D The paper shows little effort was given to the assignment. It is wrong and unclear in many places. Tips for reading academic papers: 1. Read the first sentence of each paragraph. 2. Read the entire paper. Citation: Mankiw, N. G. (2009). Smart Taxes: An Open Invitation to Join the Pigou Club. Eastern Economic Journal