The Effect of Fiscal Illusion on Public Sector Financial Management

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 635-664 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin M. Ross ◽  
Siân Mughan
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
Tax Rates ◽  
Fiscal Illusion ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Important Concern ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Cash Reserves ◽  
The Impact

An important concern to the efficiency of public finance systems is that voters may suffer from various “fiscal illusions” that can be exploited by politicians to grow the public sector. This article contributes evidence on the specific public financial management mechanisms by associating the impact property reassessments have on the “visibility” of budget size signaled by property tax rates. Using data from Virginia cities and counties from 2001 to 2011, the results indicate mass reappraisals, which reduce property tax visibility cause contemporaneous property tax levy increases, as do reappraisals that increase future tax visibility. These revenue shocks are then smoothed into expenditures through the management of assets, indicating policy makers prefer the spending to be drawn from future cash reserves than immediate projects that might draw attention to the source of fiscal illusion.

The Public Sector Mediation Process

1978 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas A. Kochan ◽  
Todd Jick
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Personal Characteristics ◽  
Mediation Process ◽  
Municipal Governments ◽  
The Public ◽  
Situational Characteristics ◽  
Alternative Sources ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Impact

This paper develops and tests a model of the labor mediation process using data from a sample of negotiations involving municipal governments and police and firefighter unions in the State of New York. The test of the model also incorporates an estimate of the impact of a change in the statutory impasse procedures governing these groups. The model examines the impact of (1) alternative sources of impasse, (2) situational characteristics, (3) strategies of the mediators, and (4) personal characteristics of the mediators on the probability of settlement, percentage of issues resolved in mediation, movement or compromising behavior, and the tendency to hold back concessions in mediation. The results indicate that the change in the impasse procedure had a marginal affect on the probability of settlement in the small to medium cities in the sample but little or no effect on the larger cities. Furthermore, a number of other measures of the sources of impasse and mediator strategies and characteristics had a stronger impact on the effectiveness of the mediation process than the nature of the impasse procedure.

scholarly journals Assessment of Accountability Practices in the Public Sector of Malaysia

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamaliah Said ◽  
Md. Mahmudul Alam ◽  
Razana Juhaida Johari
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Sector Employees ◽  
General Average ◽  
Data Validity ◽  
Accountability Practices ◽  
Survey Approach

Ensuring accountability in the public sector is a very crucial issue as it could lead to failures in governance, fraud, inefficacy, corruption as well as weak financial management. This study evaluated the state of present accountability practices among public sector employees from various Malaysian service schemes. Primary data were collected, using a questionnaire survey approach with 194 heads of departments in the Malaysian federal ministries. Data was collected in accordance with the perspective of 12 factors in accountability practices, using a five-point Likert scale. Factor analysis and descriptive statistics were utilized for data analysis. In addition, data reliability was checked by Cronbach’s alpha test; data normality was examined by Skewness and Kurtosis tests, and data validity was tested by using Kaiser-Meyer Olkin test and Barlett’s test. The findings show that 94.9% of the participants reported that they practised accountability within their departments. Nevertheless, the priority for these accountability factors varied according to the service schemes. In general, the perceived accountability practice was the highest within the group of the administrative scheme and the lowest among the employees under the accounting scheme. Moreover, the perceived accountability practice of the audit scheme was below the general average level. This findings of the study would help policy makers to take necessary steps to improve the practices of accountability in the public sector for creating a more dependable and efficient public sector in Malaysia.

scholarly journals RUSSIAN PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM: THE IMPACT ON UNIVERSITY ACCOUNTING

2008 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Konstantin Timoshenko
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Central Government ◽  
The State ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Russian State ◽  
Public Sector Accounting ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

The last few decades have witnessed substantial efforts to reinvent the state worldwide. The Russian state is no exception to this global trend. At the outset of a new millennium, the need for renewal of the post‐Soviet model of the state has been acknowledged, and an up‐to‐date reform package has been promoted by the central government. This has encompassed the reconstruction of public sector accounting. Given the paucity of consistent research efforts on the topic, this article seeks to describe and analyze, and by so doing, contribute to knowledge about Russian public sector accounting in times of change. To tackle the general purpose, two levels are incorporated in this study to link reform initiatives for the government as a whole with those endeavours to implement them in one state‐sponsored university of Russian tertiary education. The major questions to be addressed are of whether, why, and how changes at the central government level have penetrated down to the university and extended to its accounting system. The evidence gathered in this paper reveals that a new Russian public sector ideology has markedly been affected by overseas developments in the shape of large international organizations. However, no compelling evidence has been documented in this research as unveiling that changes at the macro‐level have penetrated down to the university to any significant extent. This study concludes that launching a new version of accounting by the Russian state can be regarded as more of a symbol of legitimacy for the university rather than of an actual financial management tool.

The Role of Sex and Age on Pre-drinking: An Exploratory International Comparison of 27 Countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (4) ◽  
pp. 378-385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Ferris ◽  
Cheneal Puljević ◽  
Florian Labhart ◽  
Adam Winstock ◽  
Emmanuel Kuntsche
Keyword(s):  
Multilevel Models ◽  
The United States ◽  
Drinking Behaviour ◽  
Single Model ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Worldwide Phenomenon ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Multivariate Multilevel Models

Abstract Aims This exploratory study aims to model the impact of sex and age on the percentage of pre-drinking in 27 countries, presenting a single model of pre-drinking behaviour for all countries and then comparing the role of sex and age on pre-drinking behaviour between countries. Methods Using data from the Global Drug Survey, the percentages of pre-drinkers were estimated for 27 countries from 64,485 respondents. Bivariate and multivariate multilevel models were used to investigate and compare the percentage of pre-drinking by sex (male and female) and age (16–35 years) between countries. Results The estimated percentage of pre-drinkers per country ranged from 17.8% (Greece) to 85.6% (Ireland). The influence of sex and age on pre-drinking showed large variation between the 27 countries. With the exception of Canada and Denmark, higher percentages of males engaged in pre-drinking compared to females, at all ages. While we noted a decline in pre-drinking probability among respondents in all countries after 21 years of age, after the age of 30 this probability remained constant in some countries, or even increased in Brazil, Canada, England, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States. Conclusions Pre-drinking is a worldwide phenomenon, but varies substantially by sex and age between countries. These variations suggest that policy-makers would benefit from increased understanding of the particularities of pre-drinking in their own country to efficiently target harmful pre-drinking behaviours.

The Determinants and Consequences of Tax Audits: Some Evidence from China

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wanfu Li ◽  
Jeffrey A. Pittman ◽  
Zi-Tian Wang
Keyword(s):  
Financial Reporting ◽  
Discretionary Accruals ◽  
Tax Rates ◽  
Effective Tax Rate ◽  
Difference In Differences ◽  
Effective Tax Rates ◽  
Tax Rate ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Tax Reporting ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Using data obtained from a local tax office in China, we examine the determinants of corporate tax audits and the consequences of those audits. We find that the tax authority is more likely to select a firm for an audit when the firm has a lower effective tax rate, a higher book-tax difference, and more income-decreasing discretionary accruals. Applying a difference-in-differences research design, we find that after firms have been audited, they significantly increase their effective tax rates, reduce their book-tax differences, and reduce their income-decreasing discretionary accruals. Our study provides important insights on the determinants of the tax authority's decision on whether to initiate an audit and the impact of tax audits on both tax reporting and financial reporting. JEL Classifications: H26; L51; M41.

scholarly journals The accounting, budgeting and fiscal impact of COVID-19 on the United Kingdom

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 785-795 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Heald ◽  
Ron Hodges
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Interest Rates ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Fiscal Sustainability ◽  
Accounting Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Public Finances ◽  
Economic Decision Making ◽  
Uk Government ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis paper analyses the nature and impact of budgetary responses to the pandemic in the context of the strengths and weaknesses of UK public sector financial management.Design/methodology/approachThe analysis is developed through consideration of four modes of government accounting. Data are drawn from multiple official sources, which report actual and forecast government receipts and expenditures as the crisis unfolds.FindingsThere have been dramatic effects on UK government finances. Government receipts have fallen by 12% and expenditures have increased by 36% in the first three months of the crisis (April–June 2020), compared to the previous year. Government debt increased to £1,984bn (99.6% of GDP), the highest percentage since March 1961 (ONS, 2020c). The pandemic will have the greatest impact on UK public finances in 2020–21, with a record budget deficit which, under the OBR (2020c) central scenario, may approach £322bn and increase public sector net debt to £2,205bn (104.1% of GDP).Research limitations/implicationsThe research is necessarily limited by the impact of the pandemic and the government's responses in a rapidly changing social, economic and fiscal environment.Practical implicationsStatistical accounting and budgeting dominate attention because of reporting speed and issues of international comparability. The pandemic has emphasised the importance of timeliness. Government financial reporting is marginalised, though this should not be permanent if the pandemic retreats. Fiscal sustainability analysis will warn that UK public finances are even more unsustainable than before the pandemic.Social implicationsThe interaction of higher levels of debt and future increases in interest rates might result in a new era of austerity and further centralisation of public power and economic decision-making in one of the world's most centralised democracies.Originality/valueThe paper provides an early, structured analysis of the impact of the COVID-19 emergency on UK government finances.

scholarly journals Tiebout Sorting, Zoning, and Property Tax Rates

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven C. Bourassa ◽  
Wen-Chieh Wu
Keyword(s):  
Service Provision ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
Important Variable ◽  
Tax Rates ◽  
Single Family ◽  
Property Taxation ◽  
Tax Mimicking ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Fiscal Zoning ◽  
S Model

This paper examines certain implications from the literature on Tiebout’s model of local gov-ernment service provision, particularly Hamilton’s extension of the model to include local control of land use and property taxation. Our empirical analysis focuses on the use of fiscal zoning to lower property tax rates, a topic that has not been addressed in the extensive Tiebout literature. Using data for over 100 municipalities in the Miami, Florida, metropolitan area, we specify property tax rates as a function of fiscal zoning measures, other municipal characteristics, and tax mimicking. We conclude that single-family zoning is by far the most important variable ex-plaining municipal property tax rates.

Role of Macroeconomic Variables in Entrepreneurship Development: Evidence from Renewable Energy Sector of Nepal

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-83
Author(s):  
Maheshwar Prasad Yadav
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Sector ◽  
Market Size ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Macroeconomic Variables ◽  
Entrepreneurship Development ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Insight Into

This study analyzes the impact of macroeconomic variables on entrepreneurship development in renewable energy sector of Nepal. This study examines the effect of GDP, market size in terms of population and number of households, and sales in terms of number of renewable energy systems installed on entrepreneurship development, i.e., number of renewable energy enterprises (REEs) using data from 1992/93 to 2016/17 by estimating various logarithmic models. The study concludes that the most important factor affecting entrepreneurship development is market size followed by GDP and sales in the context of renewable energy sector in Nepal. This study is considered to be useful for REEs, development actors, academia and policy makers creating employment by increasing production and providing energy in the country. The study can be further extended by incorporating the opinion and views of respondents from customers, regulating authorities and development actors in the sector to get greater insight into the results.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document