Territorial planning and tourism development tax

An economic model of land taxation involving a local government and a private developer constitutes the theoretical framework in this research. The model hinges around a two-tier approach including both a conservation and an efficiency criterion. The analysis indicates that sustainable tourism calls for the use of land taxation and planning legislation simultaneously geared to the achievement of efficiency and the signaling of the government's commitment to conservation policies. To provide support for the theoretical conclusions, an Italian case study is discussed, showing how the local government chose not to yield to a developer's requests by not changing a norm prohibiting construction near of the coastline. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.