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Local public finances in Brazil: are mayoral characteristics important?

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  • Fabiana Rocha
  • Veronica Orellano, Karina Bugarin

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the importance of mayor’s characteristics (education, experience, and gender) on Brazilian municipalities’ fiscal outcomes. In order to estimate the causal effects we use a regression discontinuity methodology based on close elections. We find no evidence that the fiscal performance of a municipality is affected by mayor’s gender. Regarding the qualification of the mayor, we find robust evidence that education and experience matter only for the composition of spending. Experienced and educated mayors choose to devote a smaller fraction of the budget to current expenditures and as a consequence seem to be more concerned with the quality of public finances.

Suggested Citation

  • Fabiana Rocha & Veronica Orellano, Karina Bugarin, 2016. "Local public finances in Brazil: are mayoral characteristics important?," Working Papers, Department of Economics 2016_04, University of São Paulo (FEA-USP).
    • Handle: RePEc:spa:wpaper:2016wpecon4
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Education; experience; gender; mayors; regression discontinuity.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H83 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - Public Administration
    • C52 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Model Evaluation, Validation, and Selection

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