This note discusses trade liberalization and trade taxes. The main issue should not be the reduction of trade taxes but of total tax revenue. By potentially changing the structure of the economy, trade liberalization will affect not just tax revenue but also the role of the state in the economy...

According to an influential theoretical argument, presidential systems tend to present smaller governments because the separation between those who decide the size of the fiscal purse and those who allocate it creates incentives for lower public expenditures. In practice, forms of government...

The recent financial crisis has initiated pressures for not only policy reform but also fundamental institutional fiscal reforms. This paper explores the connection between economic crises and fiscal institutional reforms in a region that has experienced plenty of both in recent years, namely...

Medium Term Fiscal Frameworks (MTFs) have become one of the most popular reforms to the budgetary process in Latin America during the last decade, and introducing MTFs seemed to be the magic solution for most fiscal ailments. Nonetheless, there has been no comprehensive evaluation of their...

Tax expenditures are generally defined as those government expenditures carried out through tax legislation, regulations, and practices that reduce or defer taxes for some taxpayers. There is a general concern that the tax expenditures negatively affect the budget and tax policies, which in turn...

This paper surveys selected themes in the political economy of policymaking in Latin America, with an emphasis on recent research focusing on actual decision and implementation processes, and on the political institutions and state and social actors involved in those processes. In particular,...

This paper argues that the details of political institutions help explain the low levels of personal income taxation. In particular, legislative malapportionment enables rich elites to exercise disproportionate political influence. Because over-represented districts tend to be dominated by...

The approval of Decisions 599 and 600 on the Harmonization of Substantial and Procedural Aspects of Value Added Taxes and the Harmonization of Excise Type Taxes (VAT and selective taxes) by the Commission of the Andean Community is a notable victory for the Andean integration process and sets a...

This paper analyzes the evolution and structure of taxation in the Mercosur countries. Specifically, it covers taxes on goods and services, including general excise taxes and excises taxes, and income taxes, both corporate and personal. It also discusses the role of the tax administration and...

Globalization is not a new phenomenon. However, the current form is qualitatively different from past experiences. It provides great opportunities for some countries and challenges to others. A first part of the paper identifies positive and negative effects associated with globalization. The...