State and Local Finances under Pressure explores the future of state and local government fiscal systems given the numerous pressures they face from economic, legal, technological, demographic and political forces. It explores how these multiple forces play out in terms of the changes state and...

This paper relies on a review of the literature on property tax incentives for business, a new database on property tax economic development incentives, and several state case studies to identify pitfalls in using this economic development tool. Several potential reforms are identified.

The exemption of the nonprofit sector from the corporate income tax is an implicit subsidy that has received little attention in the nonprofit literature A fundamental question concerning this subsidy is its rationale. The present analysis suggests that the theoretical basis for the rationale...

To make property-tax incentives for business more effective, do not approve every incentive request, target use of incentives, avoid incentive wars, cooperate with surrounding localities, and conduct regular evaluations.

What behavior can be expected from state and local governments, given market-analogy theories of intergovernmental competition (competition enhances efficiency) and game-theoretic models (competition is destructive)? How does the real world depart from these paradigms? What empirical hypotheses...