Using the heteroskedastic-TOBIT model to deal with both censored data and a heteroskedasticity problem, this study address determinants of interstate differentials in bank closing rates over the 1982-91 period. It is found that the bank closing rate in a state is an increasing function of the...

This exploratory study investigates the hypothesis that higher levels of economic freedom in an “economic region” promote a higher level of economic activity and hence yield higher levels of per capita real income in that economic region, ceteris paribus. However, in the pursuit of a broader...

This empirical note investigates the impact of geographic after-tax real, as opposed to nominal, income differentials on geographic population growth rates. The focus is on Florida's 67 counties and the 1980-88 time period. The empirical results imply that the population growth rate in Florida...

This exploratory study seeks to identify factors that systematically influence interstate living-cost differentials. Living costs refer to the average cost of living for a four-person family in each of the 50 states. For the year 1977, the living cost level is found to be an increasing function...

The objective of this study is to proffer and then empirically investigate for the U.S. what is being identified as the “small firms hypothesis,” i.e., a hypothesis that the greater the percentage of firms that are “small,” the greater the percentage of the population that will be...

Using over a half century of data, this empirical study adopts a simple loanable funds model to investigate the impact of federal budget deficits in the U.S. on the ex post real interest rate yield on ten year U.S. Treasury notes. Three estimates using annual data for three different time...

The adverse effects from cigarette smoking account for an estimated 400,000 deaths annually in the U.S. Given this circumstance, the present study has two objectives. First, using a panel data-set for a very recent time frame, it seeks to investigate the impact of federal plus state cigarette...

In 2013, federal personal income tax increases were implemented in the U.S. under provisions of two federal statutes: the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010. Based on our analysis of data for the time period 1970-2008, we argue that...

The present study seeks to extend the depth and scope of a very useful earlier study published in 2004. Using that study as a starting point and using more recent data [for the year 2009], this study seeks to provide a broader and more in-depth perspective on the role and relative contribution...

This study finds that ID theft rates tend to be an increasing function of the unemployment rate and the proportion of the population concentrated in urban areas, and a decreasing function of the relative amount of resources devoted to laws enforcement and the percentage of individuals who claim...