Federalism is a constitutionalized version of multi-tier governance. Proponents of veto-player theory argue that a high number of veto players leads to a high degree of policy stability. Compared to states with a unitary structure, federal countries, in which at least one sub-central level of...

Abstract Real-time social media data hold great conceptual promise for research and policymaking, but also face substantial limitations and shortcomings inherent to processing re-purposed data in near-real-time. This paper aims to fill two research gaps important for understanding utility of...

Fiscal constitutions comprise the set of rules and frameworks guiding fiscal policy that are enshrined in a country’s fundamental laws. This paper compares the fiscal constitutions of 15 federal countries by empirically assessing five building blocks: 1) the power of sub-national governments...

By constraining political incentives and discretion, the numerical fiscal rules are among the main institutional (legal) instruments to ensure fiscal discipline. As stated in this paper, in order to be effective, the numerical fiscal rules need to inflict sufficiently high costs for their...

This paper forms part of a series of nine studies on the role of the European Union in international economic fora, prepared by Policy Department A at the request of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament. It provides factual background information about the...

This article studies the causal effect of electoral systems on fiscal outcomes using an empirical design exploiting a discontinuity in the application of electoral rules in Polish municipalities in the period 2002-2014. In that period, municipalities followed either majoritarian or proportional...