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The existing EU system of own resources financing EU expenditures does not make any positive contribution to the various EU strategies and policies implemented to cope with the manifold long-term challenges confronting the EU. It is against this background that the European Commission as well as the High Level Group on Own Resources, but also the European Parliament have (repeatedly) called for the introduction of tax-based own resources to partially substitute national contributions to the EU budget. Our specific contribution to this debate consists in the exploration of sustainability-oriented options for tax-based own resources which are able to support sustainable growth and development in the EU. Based on a concept of sustainability-oriented taxation in the context of own resources for the EU, we develop sustainability-oriented evaluation criteria to assess the suitability of specific candidates for tax-based own resources. We then present various options for tax-based own resources and estimations of their revenue potential. Moreover, a summary evaluation of these options based on our evaluation criteria is undertaken. Finally, we address implementation aspects. In particular, we briefly present and discuss potential models to implement tax-based own resources in the EU within the existing legal framework.

In the current negotiations about the European Union's next medium-term Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for the period 2021 to 2027, the system of own resources financing EU expenditures plays a relatively important role.

Nuclear power plays an important role in Europe's energy mix today. Considering the manifold environmental and health hazards related to all phases of nuclear power production which may cause considerable negative externalities it is remarkable that the whole issue of using taxes as instruments to internalise the externalities associated with nuclear power is completely neglected in the literature. The paper provides a rationale for taxing nuclear power which is based on an analysis of its social costs and of potential windfall profits for the nuclear industry generated by EU policies. After giving an overview of existing nuclear taxes in the nuclear power-generating EU Member States, we elaborate the case for channelling revenues from a nuclear power tax into the EU budget as sustainability-oriented tax-based own resource replacing a part of national contributions within a fiscally neutral approach to reform the current system of own resources. Finally, the potential revenues from an EU-wide nuclear power tax are estimated. ; FairTax

The European project is a long-run success story. Up to the 1990s, Europe thrived and experienced rising prosperity, as well as a catching up process with technology frontiers, while simultaneously extending its welfare model. The integration process, starting with six member states, led to a single market of 28 countries. It culminated in the creation of a currency union for 330 million Europeans. The political integration of former communist countries and their economic catching-up with Western Europe were achieved at an unprecedented historical pace. European integration has never been a smooth process. Stress during the process was referred to under the lemma of "eurosclerosis" and entailed competitive devaluations. The Lisbon Strategy was never fully implemented. Disappointment was counter-balanced by "Europe 2020", which intended to address structural problems and give the member states a greater opportunity to adapt the strategy to their specific situations. The financial crisis quickly spread from the US to Europe, highlighting unresolved governance issues and neglected public sector reforms. These also prevented adequate responses to new problems and opportunities arising from globalisation, technology, demography, the environment and most recently the refugee crisis .

WWWforEurope has developed a comprehensive strategy to set Europe on a path to a socio-ecological transition. The strategy begins by renouncing the long-established concept of using GDP growth figures as the benchmark for economic and societal progress. In contrast, it sets "well-being in a sustainable environment" as the optimal benchmark for economic performance and social progress.

The European project is a long-run success story. Up to the 1990s, Europe thrived and experienced rising prosperity, as well as a catching up process with technology frontiers, while simultaneously extending its welfare model. The integration process, starting with six member states, led to a single market of 28 countries. It culminated in the creation of a currency union for 330 million Europeans. The political integration of former communist countries and their economic catching-up with Western Europe were achieved at an unprecedented historical pace. European integration has never been a smooth process. Stress during the process was referred to under the lemma of "eurosclerosis" and entailed competitive devaluations. The Lisbon Strategy was never fully implemented. Disappointment was counter-balanced by "Europe 2020", which intended to address structural problems and give the member states a greater opportunity to adapt the strategy to their specific situations. The financial crisis quickly spread from the US to Europe, highlighting unresolved governance issues and neglected public sector reforms. These also prevented adequate responses to new problems and opportunities arising from globalisation, technology, demography, the environment and most recently the refugee crisis .

Taxing the aviation sector at the EU level and using the resulting revenues to reduce Member States' contributions to finance the EU budget presents itself as a huge opportunity not only to decrease carbon emissions effectively, but also to reform the EU system of own resources. The aviation sector is a small but fast growing emitter of carbon dioxide. The failed attempts of several EU Member States to introduce a flight ticket tax and the pressure on those EU Member States still levying such a tax clearly demonstrate the limits of national aviation taxation. Assigning any kind of taxes on flight tickets to the EU level would greatly reduce the tax enforcement problems inherent to mobile tax bases and put a stop to harmful tax competition between EU Member States. A double dividend, consisting of a reduction of CO2 on the one side and a boost for the economy on the other side, is a likely scenario if additional tax revenues are spent in the right way. Therefore, in this paper it is proposed that all revenues from a European carbon-based ticket tax should be used to reduce contributions of Member States to the EU budget. This would allow national governments to reduce taxes more harmful for growth and employment, in particular the high tax burden on labour. Given the current political and legal situation a European carbon-based ticket tax has better chances of implementation compared to a tax on aviation fuel and is therefore a financial instrument which could foster sustainable growth in the very near future. The paper estimates the expected revenue from implementing a carbon-based flight ticket tax at the EU level and revenue distribution across EU Member States. In particular, we propose that every passenger departing from an airport within the EU and every passenger arriving from outside the EU at an EU-based airport is subjected to this new carbon tax which is calculated individually for every route flown. The paper uses a new and very exact data set, which (depending on the country) assigns to approximately 75% to 90% of the respective intra and extra EU routes flown in the year 2014 the corresponding carbon dioxide emissions per passenger (using the ICAO methodology). Based on the demand elasticities provided by IATA (2007), we are thus able to exactly calculate the tax revenues per passenger per route that could have been generated in 2014 by introducing a carbon-based flight ticket tax in the EU.

There is evidence that a budget consolidation strategy can work with only a small and shortlived negative impact on growth. However, many countries are currently trying to consolidate at the same time as firms and consumers are deleveraging. We develop ten guidelines for consolidation during such a difficult economic period and cross-check whether the upcoming consolidation programmes being implemented in the EU countries comply with our guidelines. We propose following a 'high road' on cutting deficits, which includes an active growthenhancing component during the consolidation period. The active component should be financed by deeper cuts in subsidies, by eliminating obsolete government expenditure as well as by increasing the efficiency of the public sector. Taxes should not be raised permanently - a temporary contribution to consolidation will be needed, but tax structures in general should be made more growth and employment friendly.

The relationship between government size and growth has received an enormous attention in the economics literature, and the recent financial crisis has forced this topic back on the agenda. A highly controversial debate in this respect is whether large governments are harmful for growth. Endogenous growth theory provides us with the view that tax structure and the composition of public expenditure may be important for growth, perhaps even more than total tax or expenditure levels. Government size and structure are, however, also reflected in the level and structure of market regulations, which may substitute or complement fiscal intervention. The study provides an overview of the growth-friendliness of fiscal and regulatory structures in a cross-section of EU 15 and EU 12 countries and highly developed OECD countries. Peripheral European (transition) countries are also included, whenever respective data are available. Our analysis is based on several measures capturing the expenditure and the tax side of the budgets, as well as regulatory policies. It is shown that the size and the structure of fiscal and regulatory regimes and, hence, the expected long-run growth impact of government activities, still differ markedly across countries.

There is evidence that a budget consolidation strategy can work with only a small and short lived negative impact on growth. However, this time consolidation is taking place in the aftermath of a deep crisis which had lead to increased levels of uncertainty. In addition the financial sector, as well as its regulation is under reconstruction. Firms and consumers are deleveraging, and many countries are trying to consolidate at the same time. We develop ten guidelines for consolidation during such a difficult economic period. We compare them to other guidelines published and, to the extent possible, cross-check whether the upcoming consolidation programs being implemented or revealed in various countries comply with our guidelines. We propose to follow a "high road" on cutting deficits, which includes an active growth enhancing component during the consolidation period. The "active component" should be financed by deeper cuts in subsidies, by eliminating obsolete government expenditure as well as by increasing the efficiency of the public sector. Taxes should not be raised permanently - a temporary contribution to consolidation will be needed, but tax structures in general should be made more growth and employment friendly.

"Der Amsterdamer Vertrag von 1997 und nachfolgende EU-Gipfel verankerten ehrgeizige beschäftigungspolitische Ziele, insbesondere die Erhöhung der Frauenbeschäftigungsquote von derzeit 53,8% auf 60% bis 2010. Der ebenfalls in Amsterdam beschlossene Stabilitäts- und Wachstumspakt behindert die meisten Mitgliedsstaaten, umfangreiche Reformen in der Steuer- und Sozialpolitik und zur Verbesserung der Kinderbetreuungsinfrastruktur durchzuführen. Ehebezogene Steuersysteme, Ernährerprinzipien in der Sozialversicherung, geringe Anreize oder Verpflichtungen für Väter, Kinderbetreuungsphasen zu übernehmen, haben einen negativen Effekt auf die Erhöhung der weiblichen Arbeitsmarktpartizipation und befördern die Ausgrenzung in prekäre Beschäftigungsverhältnisse. Die herrschende makroökonomische Grundorientierung der europäischen Wirtschaftspolitik auf die Konsolidierung der öffentlichen Haushalte impliziert den Fortbestand und sogar Verstärkung der Unterschiede zwischen Männern und Frauen auf dem Arbeitsmarkt." (Autorenreferat)

This paper concentrates on international fiscal competition for internationally mobile direct investment. We differentiate between multinational enterprises whose direct investments are internationally mobile and domestic enterprises whose investment activities are limited to their country of residence. In a model with impure public inputs we analyse strategies of tax competition and examine the effects of competition by government expenditures for public inputs under the assumption that preferences for public inputs are different for each type of firms.