The paper provides a critical review of the literature on the concept of progressivity in thetaxation of petroleum and mineral resources and offers a fresh perspective on its purpose andmeasurement. Regressive taxes, such as royalties, exist to satisfy policy objectives other thanrevenue...

We construct the ratio of the post-fisc to the pre-fisc transitory component of the variance of family incomes in Canada from 1993 and 2008. The ratio measures how much the tax and transfer system attenuates market income instability. It is shown that the ratio of variances is equivalent...

The paper provides a critical review of the literature on the concept of progressivity in the taxation of petroleum and mineral resources and offers a fresh perspective on its purpose and measurement. Regressive taxes, such as royalties, exist to satisfy policy objectives other than revenue...