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Does fiscal redistribution discourage local public investment?

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  • Thornton Matheson

Abstract

This paper studies the determinants of regional (oblast‐level) public investment in transitional Russia, focusing on the effects of federal fiscal redistribution. A model of local government expenditure in the presence of regional asymmetries shows that revenue redistribution from wealthy to poor regions discourages local public investment. Random‐ and fixed‐effects estimation of regional panel data for 1994–97 supports the existence of a disincentive effect from fiscal redistribution on regional public investment, which varies according to a region's federal status and wealth: non‐republics have a lower propensity to invest out of transfers than out of own income, as do regions with above‐median per capita income. Republics reduce public investment more than current spending in response to higher federal taxation. Russia's ‘asymmetrical federalism’ thus creates different fiscal incentives for different types of regions.

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  • Thornton Matheson, 2005. "Does fiscal redistribution discourage local public investment?," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 13(1), pages 139-162, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:etrans:v:13:y:2005:i:1:p:139-162
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0351.2005.00210.x
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    1. Elena Jarocińska, 2010. "Intergovernmental grants in Russia," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 18(2), pages 405-427, April.
    2. Claudio Burian Wanderley, 2006. "Transferências Federativas E Potência Dos Contratos: Avaliação Da Lei Robin Hood," Anais do XII Semin·rio sobre a Economia Mineira [Proceedings of the 12th Seminar on the Economy of Minas Gerais], in: João Antonio de Paula & et alli (ed.),Anais do XII Seminário sobre a Economia Mineira [Proceedings of the 12th Seminar on the Economy of Minas Gerais], Cedeplar, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.
    3. Claudio Burian Wanderley, 2007. "Transferências Federativas E Potência Dos Contratos: Avaliação Da Lei Robin Hood," Anais do XXXV Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 35th Brazilian Economics Meeting] 012, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].
    4. Vallés-Giménez, Jaime & Zárate-Marco, Anabel, 2017. "Catalytic effect of capital transfers in a federal context: The case of Spanish regions," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 11, pages 1-27.
    5. Libman, Alexander, 2013. "Natural resources and sub-national economic performance: Does sub-national democracy matter?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(C), pages 82-99.
    6. Alexeev, Michael (Алексеев, Майкл) & Mamedov, Arseny (Мамедов, Арсений) & Fomina, Evgenia (Фомина, Евгения) & Deryugin, Alexander (Дерюгин, Александр), 2017. "Influence of the Main Characteristics of Interbudgetary Relations on the Indicators of Economic Development of the Subjects of the Russian Federation [Влияние Основных Характеристик Межбюджетных От," Working Papers 031717, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.
    7. Cláudio Burian Wanderley, 2010. "Evolução Da Arrecadação Tributária Municipal Em Minas Gerais No Início Do Novo Milênio," Anais do XIV Semin·rio sobre a Economia Mineira [Proceedings of the 14th Seminar on the Economy of Minas Gerais], in: Anais do XIV Seminário sobre a Economia Mineira [Proceedings of the 14th Seminar on the Economy of Minas Gerais], Cedeplar, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.
    8. Alexander Libman, 2012. "Democracy, size of bureaucracy, and economic growth: evidence from Russian regions," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 43(3), pages 1321-1352, December.
    9. Thiess Büttner, 2021. "Land Use and Fiscal Competition," CESifo Working Paper Series 8958, CESifo.

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