Do political institutions shape the structure of public spending? Based on a sample of 141 elections in eighteen Western European countries over the period 1970-1998, this paper shows that governments’ margin of maneuverability to design and implement fiscal policies depends on the level of...

This article examines the institutional and individual determinants of the correct allocation of political responsibilities in a decentralized country such as Spain. It also deals with the learning process of individuals over time. Our results show that the allocation of powers is more...

The quest for political support drives to upward deviations from forecasted public deficits when i) budget procedures are soft, ii) breaking promises involving higher expenditures and lower taxes is costly in political terms, and iii) ex–post control by voters and political opposition is...

This article examines the institutional and individual determinants of the correct allocation of political responsibilities in a decentralized country such as Spain. It also deals with the learning process of individuals over time. Our results show that the allocation of powers is more...

Based on a sample of 227 elections in seventeen Western European countries over the period of 1945-1998, this paper examines to what extent party systems are shaped by fiscal and political decentralization. With the exception of a few special cases, empirical evidence does not support the...

The quest for political support drives to upward deviations from forecasted public deficits when i) budget procedures are soft, ii) breaking promises involving higher expenditures and lower taxes is costly in political terms, and iii) ex–post control by voters and political opposition is...

In this paper we explore to what extent political regimes affect the competitive balance in domestic football (soccer) leagues. Relying on data from around 50 European countries and over 2,000 domestic leagues, we show that the percentage of league competitions won by the most successful club in...

. The aim of this paper is twofold. Firstly, a data set corresponding to Galician municipalities is used to test asymmetries in the effects of cuts and increases in grants on total spending. Then political factors (electoral cycle, colour and political strength of local governments) and...

. This paper analyzes the evolution of fiscal federalism in Spain and Canada, focusing on the exercise of normative powers on the Personal Income Tax (PIT). This is done by presenting and comparing the evolution of the use of taxing powers by two sets of subnational governments: the Canadian...