Why are carbon taxes unfair? Disentangling public perceptions of fairness

Abstract

In order to reach climate goals, governments need to gain support from their voters for the necessary policy interventions, such as carbon dioxide taxes. Previous research concludes that people often do not support and legitimize such taxes because they perceive them as unfair. However, the notion of fairness implies a multitude of factors and we currently lack an understanding of what people mean when they regard carbon taxes as unfair. In this article, we thoroughly investigate this problem by using original survey data from YouGov collected in the US in 2018 and analyzing open-ended survey responses on why people think carbon taxes are unfair. Applying structural text modeling, we unpack the multi-dimensional meaning of unfairness, as perceived by the US population. Results from our analysis help provide a more nuanced policy design to address fairness concerns related to carbon taxes.