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Is there a "race-to-the-bottom" in the setting of welfare benefit levels? Evidence from a policy intervention

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Dahlberg, Matz
Edmark, Karin

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Abstract

In this paper we investigate whether local governments react on the welfare benefit levels in neighboring jurisdictions when setting their own benefit levels. We solve the simultaneity problem arising from the welfare game by utilizing a policy intervention; more specifically, we use a centrally geared exogenous placement of a highly welfare prone group (refugees) among Swedish municipalities as an instrument. The IV estimates indicate that there exists a "race-to-the-bottom" and that the effect is economically as well as statistically significant; if the neighboring municipalities decrease their welfare benefit level by 100Â SEK, a municipality decreases its benefit level with approximately 41Â SEK. This result is robust to several alternative model specifications.

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Publisher Info
Article provided by Elsevier in its journal Journal of Public Economics.

Volume (Year): 92 (2008)
Issue (Month): 5-6 (June)
Pages: 1193-1209
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Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:92:y:2008:i:5-6:p:1193-1209

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Web page: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505578

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  1. Per-Anders Edin & Peter Fredriksson & Olof Åslund, 2003. "Ethnic Enclaves And The Economic Success Of Immigrants - Evidence From A Natural Experiment," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 118(1), pages 329-357, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  2. Manski, C.F., 1990. "The Selection Problem," Working papers 90-12, Wisconsin Madison - Social Systems.
  3. Besley, Timothy & Case, Anne, 1995. "Incumbent Behavior: Vote-Seeking, Tax-Setting, and Yardstick Competition," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(1), pages 25-45, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  4. Smith, Patricia K, 1991. " An Empirical Investigation of Interstate AFDC Benefit Competition," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 68(1-3), pages 217-33, January.
  5. Brown, Charles C. & Oates, Wallace E., 1987. "Assistance to the poor in a federal system," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 307-330, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  6. Wildasin, David E, 1991. "Income Redistribution in a Common Labor Market," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 81(4), pages 757-74, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Jörgen Hansen & Magnus Lofstrom, 1999. "Immigrant Assimilation and Welfare Participation: Do Immigrants Assimilate Into or Out-of Welfare," IZA Discussion Papers 100, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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  8. Marianne Bertrand & Esther Duflo & Sendhil Mullainathan, 2002. "How Much Should We Trust Differences-in-Differences Estimates?," NBER Working Papers 8841, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Phillip B. Levine & David J. Zimmerman, 1995. "An Empirical Analysis of the Welfare Magnet Debate Using the NLSY," NBER Working Papers 5264, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Figlio, David N. & Kolpin, Van W. & Reid, William E., 1999. "Do States Play Welfare Games?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(3), pages 437-454, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Manski, Charles F, 1993. "Identification of Endogenous Social Effects: The Reflection Problem," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 60(3), pages 531-42, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Jørn Rattsø & Jon Hernes Fiva, 2004. "Welfare Competition in Norway," Working Paper Series 4204, Department of Economics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology. [Downloadable!]
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  1. Berg, Lennart & Berger, Tommy, 2005. "The Q theory and the Swedish housing market –an empirical test," Working Paper Series 2005:19, Uppsala University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  2. Johansson, Fredrik & Klevmarken, Anders, 2006. "Explaining the size and nature of response in a survey on health status and economic standard," Working Paper Series 2006:2, Uppsala University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  3. Edmark, Karin & Ågren, Hanna, 2006. "Identifying Strategic Interactions in Swedish Local Income Tax Policies," Working Paper Series 2006:22, Uppsala University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  4. Jon H. Fiva, 2007. "Does Welfare Policy Affect Residential Choices? Evidence from a Natural Experiment," Discussion Papers 503, Research Department of Statistics Norway. [Downloadable!]
  5. Dahlberg, Matz & Mörk, Eva, 2008. "Is there an election cycle in public employment? Separating time effects from election year effects," Working Paper Series 2008:3, IFAU - Institute for Labour Market Policy Evaluation. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Edmark, Karin, 2007. "Strategic Competition in Swedish Local Spending on Childcare, Schooling and Care for the Elderly," Working Paper Series 2007:21, Uppsala University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Engström, Per & Holmlund, Bertil, 2005. "Worker Absenteeism in Search Equilibrium," Working Paper Series 2005:22, Uppsala University, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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