BUS360 Taxes, Inequality, and Sustainability

Taxes and inequality are central topics in the society and for public policy. This course serves as an introduction to these matters. It bridges macro and micro related topics, with emphasis on understanding the basic structure of the tax system, how taxes affect behaviour, and how this again is related to inequality and the Sustainable Development Goals.

A key lesson of the course is that sustainability covers all sides of society, not only the environment. The course makes students aware of how firms’ and individuals’ actions regarding taxes affects society and thus sustainability. Central to the course is both the SDG10 "Reduce inequality within and among countries" and the SDG16 "Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels".

Teaching is research based and policy relevant, both bringing the research frontier into the lecture hall and drawing on current newspaper articles and policy debates. The goal is for the students to get an understanding of the most important and up-to-date research and discussions on taxation and inequality, and to learn how to process, apply and communicate policy relevant research.

Knowledge

After completed course, the student should have:

• Detailed knowledge about the role of taxes in modern societies and the Norwegian tax system
• An advanced understanding of how taxes affect the behaviour of individuals and firms
• Knowledge about the state-of-the-art economic research on taxation and inequality
• A thorough understanding of the challenges to taxing capital in a globalized world, including the roles of tax havens

Skills

After completed course, the student should be able to:

• Distinguish between different behavioural responses to taxes: Real, avoidance, and evasion
• Describe the structure of the Norwegian tax system and relate it to other countries
• Give an account for trends in inequality across time and countries and think critically about how inequality is measured
• Describe the difference between tax evasion and tax avoidance, as well as give examples of both

General competence

After completed course, the student:

• Can understand and analyse advanced policy debates about tax policy and inequality
• Is able to reflect on the interaction between taxes, inequality, and sustainability, as well as ethics related to taxation and tax avoidance
• Can read economic research articles and present the main findings and methodology for a broad audience