Rule-Based Fiscal Stabilization with Consumption Taxes
I study how far a consumption tax rule can substitute for interest rate policy when nominal rates are constrained. In a two-agent New Keynesian economy, the tax shifts spending across dates but also introduces labor supply distortions and affects tax revenue. Equilibrium determinacy depends jointly on transfer distribution and feedback strength. Weaker feedback improves population welfare under markup and productivity risk, while demand risk yields the highest welfare at an intermediate feedback strength. Inflation responds non-monotonically to consumption tax feedback strength, which can restrain inflation while producing different allocations and welfare from monetary policy.