This paper is concerned with the question as to what extent population size and density affect the cost of providing public services at the subnational level. Empirical estimates of cost functions are obtained from an analysis of the expenditures of German states disaggregated into about 40...

Die gegenwärtige Beschäftigungskrise betrifft vor allem Ballungsregionen. Aber nicht alle Regionen schneiden gleichermaßen schlecht ab. Welche Rolle spielt die Vernetzung wissensintensiver Dienstleistungen und Industrien für eine erfolgreiche Krisenbewältigung?

Das Bundesverfassungsgericht hat in seinem Urteil zum Länderfinanzausgleich vom 11.11.1999 eine Prüfung verlangt, ob die im Finanzausgleichsgesetz vorgesehene Besserstellung großer Orte, insbesondere der Stadtstaaten, vertretbar ist. Die Problematik betrifft noch stärker als den...

Commuting is, therefore, an important equilibrating vehicle in a city network constellation. Cities act as attractors of commuters, as most economic activity occurs in cities, thus providing a high share of attractive workplaces. Cities that are centrally connected in a network may act as both...

Redistributive grants schemes, such as fiscal equalization, are a common characteristic of local public finance in several countries. However, large and small jurisdictions are treated differently by the respective fiscal equalization schemes that often tend to favour larger jurisdictions. This...

The paper proposes an econometric approach for quantifying jointly the geographical scope of commuting as well as the various forms of agglomeration economies originating from metropolitan centers. Adopting an urban economics perspective, and using land prices to measure their aggregate effects,...