In this note, we propose a simple infinite horizon of elections with two candidates. We suppose that the government policy presents some degree of inertia, i.e. a new government cannot completely change the policy implemented by the incumbent. When the policy inertia is strong enough, no party...

This note extends the work of Elliott and Navin (2002) on the substitutability of commercial casinos and state lotteries by controlling for a potential negative selection bias. We utilize a Heckman two-step selection correction in which our first stage probit involves whether or not a state has...

People are consumers and voters. Their sentiment about the economy and the competence of their leaders determine their confidence level. This research note investigates whether economic conditions measured by changes in the recent consumption level modify the dynamics of confidence formation....

People are consumers and voters. Their sentiment about the economy and the competence of their leaders determine their confidence level. This research note investigates whether economic conditions measured by changes in the recent consumption level modify the dynamics of confidence formation....

The problems of crime and the quality of justice have become central issues in public debate and important public policy concerns in a number of Caribbean countries. This problem is perhaps most acute in Jamaica which has acquired an unenviable reputation for having a high rate of violent crime....

In this paper we provide a theoretical analysis of transfer sharing in a federalist economy by means of bargaining among regions and the federal government. The federal government could decide either to negotiate simultaneously with each region (bilateral negotiation), to negotiate with all...

The purpose of this paper is to consider an economy that incorporates cross-border shopping and where the different levels of government are concerned with the well-being of their citizens. We assume a federal economy with a central government and two regions with specific characteristics. Two...

What is the optimal way to stabilize shocks and to take care of fiscal discipline in a fiscal union ? Among the various possible ways, this paper focuses on an inter-countries insurance scheme conditioned by the national preference for fiscal discipline of each government. We will show that the...

Statewide voucher plans are consistently rejected in plebiscites. This article explains voters' attachment to public education despite the schools' deficiencies: The public benefit of local schools accrues to parents, not children. Having children in a local school enables adults to get to know...