We document a negative relation between abnormal temperature and quality of life in the U.S. since 1990. Cross-state and (within state-year) county-level comparisons both indicate that the temperature-quality of life relation is more positive in states adopting more stringent environmental...

We investigate political contributions made by municipal underwriters under the regulation of Rule G- 37, which requires detailed disclosure and prohibits contributing underwriters from conducting municipal securities business for two years if the contribution exceeds $250. We find that...

We study the relation between disclosure and competition for capital, using Moody's 2010 recalibration of the municipal rating scale. On a relative basis, the recalibration advantaged highly upgraded issuers and disadvantaged lowly upgraded issuers. We develop a model to show that for...

We examine how Moody's ratings scale recalibration in 2010, which has been linked to higher county-level government spending and income, affects income and population distributions. We find that the recalibration decreases median and average per capita income and increases income inequality and...

I examine how transparency and inter-dealer trading affects prices investors pay in municipal bond offerings. Real-time trade reporting for municipal bonds started January 31, 2005. The dispersion of purchase prices fell sharply at that time. There was little impact on average markups for most...

We study how government regulation limiting the adoption of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policies distorts financial market outcomes. The state of Texas enacted laws in 2021 that prohibit municipalities from contracting with banks that have certain ESG policies. This led to the...

We examine how amnesty-based regulatory initiatives affect compliance in the context of the SEC’s 2014 Municipalities Continuing Disclosure Cooperation initiative (MCDC). In an effort to increase transparency in the municipal debt market, the MCDC granted favorable settlement terms to...

I examine how transparency and interdealer trading affects prices investors pay in municipal bond offerings. Real-time trade reporting for municipal bonds started January 31, 2005. The dispersion of purchase prices fell sharply at that time. There was little impact on average markups for most...

The paper proposes a scheme of organizational-economic mechanism to attract investment to the region's agriculture. The correlation between the level of state support for small and medium enterprises and the volume of agricultural production in the municipal dis-tricts of the Omsk region is...

We investigate the political determinants of risk premiums which sub-national governments in Switzerland have to pay for their sovereign bond emissions. For this purpose we analyse financial market data from 288 tradable cantonal bonds in the period from 1981 to 2007. Our main focus is on two...