Der CO2-Preis in Deutschland: Möglichkeiten der Rückverteilung und Verteilungswirkungen
Diskussionspapier
In this article, we examine the distributional effects of CO2 pricing on emissions in the heating and transport sectors for Germany. Often regarded by economists as a key instrument of a successful and efficient climate policy, this pricing instrument is only hesitantly promoted due to concerns about high and unequal cost burdens. Using household data from the income and consumption sample and a microsimulation model, we examine the cost burden on private households for various price levels and relief measures. In addition to the already frequently investigated redistribution variant of the per capita flat rate, we analyze in particular the effects of an electricity price reduction as well as, for the first time, an income-based redistribution and a per-household flat rate. In addition to the regressive distributional effects of carbon pricing without redistribution known from the literature, our results show that an electricity price reduction has a less progressive effect than a per capita flat rate and that income-based redistribution has the most progressive effect. A per-household flat rate could provide greater relief for single-person households compared to a per-capita flat rate, but carries the risk of creating incentives for a larger living space per person. While hardly any differences in the carbon price cost burden between rural and urban households are discernible, the energy expenditure structure and appliance equipment reveal households that already belong to the vulnerable groups before carbon pricing. Even if the carbon price sends an important signal to all households to make their energy consumption efficient and low in emissions, these results indicate that vulnerable households should be specifically supported in their adaptation process in addition to a relieving redistribution.