This paper analyzes the distribution of discretionary transfers from higher tiers of government in the process of fiscal adjustment in local jurisdictions which were hit by a negative revenue shock in formula transfers. Spanish local governments experienced a 30% fall in their revenue-sharing...

Abstract: How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected state budgets? Using a quarterly panel of states between 1994 and 2019, we estimate how changes in employment affect tax revenues. We find that a one percentage point (pp) rise in employment is associated with a 1.56pp rise in total tax revenue,...

The COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating effects on lives, the economy, and the public finances worldwide, drawing attention to the need to enhance resilience to future shocks. This paper focuses on subnational governments, given their important and growing role in the provision of essential...

As nations struggle to restart their economy after COVID-19 lockdowns, calls to include green investments in a pandemic-related stimulus are growing. Yet little research provides evidence of the effectiveness of a green stimulus. We begin by summarizing recent research on the effectiveness of...

In 2009, Germany invested 15.4 Billion Euro in infrastructure to avert the looming recession. In this study, we evaluate whether the German stimulus program was successful in limiting the impact of the crisis on the job market. We exploit exogenous cross-sectional variation to identify the...

Die unverändert geringe Wirtschaftskraft, die Steuerprogression und die geltenden Zerlegungsregeln sind die Kernursachen der niedrigen Steuerkraft in Ostdeutschland. Dies geht aus einer Studie der Dresdner Niederlassung des ifo Instituts im Auftrag des Sächsischen Staatsministeriums der...

The growing use of information and communications technology (ICT) by business - e-business - profoundly affects the economy. This article covers some of the macroeconomic impacts of e-business. Evidence from empirical studies examining the impact that greater use of ICT by business has on...

This paper analyzes the impact of the education funding component of the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the Recovery Act) on public school districts. We use cross- Sectional differences in district-level Recovery Act funding to investigate the program's impact on staffing,...

This paper (i) estimates the local effects of government stimulus spending on labor market outcomes and (ii) shows how these effects can be obtained from a firm's optimal policy in the presence of costs to hiring workers. We analyze the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery...

This paper studies the effect of government stimulus spending on a novel aspect of the labor market: the differential impact of spending on the total wage bill versus employment. We analyze the 2009 Recovery Act via instrumental variables using a new instrument, the spending done by federal...