The purpose of this paper is to assess whether expenditure decentralization has contributed to weakening fiscal performance in Europe. Using a panel of EU15 countries for the period 1995-2011, we estimate three econometric models and ask the following questions: (1) does the form of spending...

We investigate how lump-sum equalization transfers affect expenditures and taxes in the municipalities of the largest German state North Rhine-Westphalia. In general, those general-purpose transfers cannot be treated as exogenous variables. Thus, for the identification of causal effects, two...

We investigate the effect of general-purpose transfers on different expenditure categories and tax rates in the municipalities of Saxony (eastern Germany) and North Rhine-Westphalia (western Germany). Findings from the panel data analysis suggest the existence of the "flypaper effect" -...

Die Landeseinnahmen werden in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in den kommenden Jahren sinken, da die Zuweisungen im Rahmen des Länderfinanzausgleichs wegen der abnehmenden Bevölkerungszahl, rückläufiger Zahlungen aus den EU-Fonds sowie der Degression des Solidarpaktes II zurückgehen. Dies wird auch...

We investigate the impact of immigration on public budgets using administrative data from German districts (Kreise). While previous literature suggests that the fiscal benefits of migration depend on government spending responses to immigration, the local-level effects in Germany remain...

This paper looks at reform proposals for the fiscal transfer system in Germany to take account of differences in governmental purchasing powers across states, i.e. differences in governmental costs of public goods and services. Since data on differences in governmental purchasing power is...

In response to the current fiscal crisis, the Government of Romania has amended the law governing local government finance. The amendments are largely aimed at restraining local government staffing and curtailing arrears. They require somewhat onerous administrative measures. This report argues...

Der vorliegende Beitrag diskutiert die Frage, ob der Mikrostaat Liechtenstein ökonomische Nachteile aus seiner Kleinheit hinzunehmen hat. Am Beispiel des Fürstentums werden verschiedene Dimensionen der Dezentralität aufgezeigt. Kleinheit als dritte Dimension der Dezentralität wird dabei an...

This paper discusses the smallness of subsidiary jurisdictions as a third dimension of centrality, besides vertical centrality and fragmentation (horizontal centrality). A panel analysis concerning all 26 Swiss cantons (from 1990 to 2003) shows that public expenditure per-capita increases with...

We test the hypothesis that the flypaper effect can arise if the recipient government finances part of its expenditures with a distortionary tax. We present a simple theoretical framework that shows how a lump-sum transfer stimulates the marginal expenditures of a recipient government through an...