
The Positive Effects of a Higher Alcohol Tax
Philip J. Cook and Christine Piette Durrance have published a working paper called "The Virtuous Tax: Lifesaving and Crime-Prevention Effects of the 1991 Federal Alcohol-Tax Increase." It makes a substantial argument for the upside of higher alcohol taxes:
On January 1, 1991, the federal excise tax on beer doubled, and the tax rates on wine and liquor increased as well. ... We demonstrate that the relative importance of drinking in traffic fatalities is closely tied to per capita alcohol consumption across states. As a result, we expect that the proportional effects of the federal tax increase on traffic fatalities would be positively correlated with per capita consumption.