Can the provision of public goods strengthen the fiscal capacity of governments in developing countries and move them toward an equilibrium of widespread tax compliance? We present evidence of the impact of local public infrastructure on tax compliance, leveraging a large public investment...

We develop a framework to analyze partial population experiments, a generalization of the cluster experimental design where clusters are assigned to different treatment intensities. Our framework allows for heterogeneity in cluster sizes and outcome distributions. We study the large-sample...

This paper studies the effects of transitioning from a system of sales taxes to a value-added tax (VAT) on firm-level outcomes. We construct a dataset of product- and state-specific tax rates before and after India gradually switched from a sales tax to a VAT. Exploiting staggered state-level...

Tanzania is currently implementing a local government reform aimed at improving public service delivery. An important component of the reform is to increase the fiscal autonomy of local authorities. This policy is encouraged and partly initiated by the donor community. The purpose of this...

This paper discusses the roles that real property taxes may potentially play in developing countries both as a source of local revenue and as part of land use policy. We then describe how very far reality diverges from this prescription and note some reasons why it may prove more difficult to...

This paper reviews the literature and evidence on the most appropriate structure of regional and local taxes in developing countries. A good subnational tax system is critical to an effective and sustainable system of intergovernmental fiscal relations – a need that has become increasingly...

After a review of the foreign direct investment (FDI) literature, and after the analysis of some recent European experiences (Spain, Ireland) of quick economic development sustained from abroad, the paper suggests that a specific fiscal policy can be applied to the South of Italy, in order to...

Widespread tax evasion reflected in persistent public resistance to pay is seen as part of the problem of raising local government revenues in Tanzania. Dealing with the policy problem of revenue enhancement and tax evasion requires some understanding of the factors underlying the individual's...

This paper analyzes the welfare implications of a transfer mechanism in a fiscally decentralized economy where local governments select their tax collection effort to maximize their lifetime utility. We consider a transfer rule that both punishes for the lack of efficiency in tax-collection and...

En este trabajo se analiza el esfuerzo fiscal que realizan los municipios guatemaltecos sobre el recaudo de su principal ingreso tributario, el Impuesto Único Sobre Inmuebles (IUSI). Los resultados del estudio indican que el esfuerzo fiscal municipal es bajo y lejano a su potencial en el caso...