Die Aufgabe der kommunalen Wasserversorgungsunternehmen besteht darin, die Verbraucher mit qualitativ hochwertigem Trinkwasser in ausreichender Menge zu versorgen. Auf der anderen Seite müssen die kommunalen Abwasserentsorgungsbetriebe das von den Grundstückseigentümern erzeugte Abwasser...

This paper formulates a general theory of how political unrest influences public policy. Political unrest is motivated by emotions. Individuals engage in protests if they are aggrieved and feel that they have been treated unfairly. This reaction is predictable because individuals have a...

We investigate the influence of government size on the exposure of consumption growth to country-specific fluctuations in output growth using a sample of OECD countries. To the extent that governments are less constrained on international financial markets, it appears conceivable that...

A rise in population caused by increased immigration, is sometimes accompanied by concerns that the increase in population puts additional or differential pressure on welfare services which might affect the net fiscal contribution of immigrants. The UK and Germany have experienced significant...

In this note we show that tax-rate elasticities of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to Central and East European Countries (CEECs) derived from statutory corporate income tax rates (STRs) are likely to be flawed. From a conceptual point of view STRs are problematic as they neither capture tax...

Countries are often slow to adjust their economic structures to new necessities although this reform reluctance is costly in terms of growth and employment. This paper analyses the relevant factors that block or foster economic reforms. Theoretical considerations show that there are at least...

This paper treats the question to what extent globalization trends restrict a countryspecific regulation policy in industrial countries. The empirical analysis makes use of recently collected regulation indicators for four policy fields: financial market, product markets, labour markets and...

In diesem Beitrag wird neben einem kurzen Überblick über die Argumentationsweise und Probleme der Theorie optimaler Währungsräume ein neues Beurteilungskriterium vorgestellt: die politische Reformfähigkeit potentieller Mitgliedstaaten einer Währungsunion. Hintergrund für diese Erweiterung...

The contribution Bach, Corneo and Steiner (2008) has argued that "the rich" do not pay taxes adequately in relation to their income, finding, for instance, an effective tax rate of only 38.1% for the 0.001% fractile of German income taxpayers in 2001. This result contrasts sharply with the...

This paper analyzes the consequences of an electoral reform introducing mayoral term limits at the municipal level in Portugal. Relying on a difference-in-difference methodology and a novel method that accounts for anticipatory effects of reforms, this study explores variation between and within...