George advocated a land value tax; that is a tax on the <i>unimproved value of the land</i>.<p>This might seem like a minor difference but it actually isn&#x27;t, because taxes generally cause changes in behaviour.  Sometimes those changes are desirable:  Carbon taxes, &quot;sin&quot; taxes, etc.  More often the change is undesirable (as when we tax investment, wages, or consumption).  (And, very frequently, those changes in behaviour results in the actual burden of the tax shifting.  Payroll taxes are levied on businesses, but nobody actually thinks they <i>pay</i> them.)<p>Tax housing, and you&#x27;ll get less housing.  Since people like housing (that&#x27;s why they build it), that&#x27;s considered a Bad Thing.  Tax land, and you&#x27;ll...get the same amount of land.  With a few very minor exceptions, the amount of land is fixed.  No distortions, no deadweight costs, and no real ability to shift the economic burden of the tax.