We develop a model along the lines of Niskanen, articulating that under a soft government budget constraint the full production cost of the public good is not reflected in the tax price as perceived by the consumer-taxpayer-voter. Various proportions of non-tax financing and different degrees of...

This study presents survey evidence on the magnitude and determinants of tax compliance costs in Flemish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Data were obtained from an Internet questionnaire among members of a professional network of Flemish entrepreneurs, called VOKA. Analyzing a sample...

In 2005 the Belgian government introduced a radically new measure into the corporate tax system: the notional interest deduction. This feature allows Belgian companies to deduct a fictitious interest cost on equity from their tax base and tackles the classical tax discrimination between debt and...

Most countries of the world have developed a wide array of government assistance programs for companies. However, it is only recently that researchers have started to evaluate the benefits of these programs empirically. This paper contributes to this emerging area of research by examining...

This paper empirically assesses whether knowledge networking affects the growth of small service firms. More specifically, using a large, unbalanced panel data set for the period 1992-2009, it investigates whether participation in a knowledge network called PLATO is positively related to service...

In March 2011, the European Commission launched a proposal for a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB). However, a Common Corporate Tax Base (CCTB), leaving consolidation and apportionment out of consideration, appears to be a more realistic proposition for corporate tax harmonization...

This study explores a large and detailed dataset of financial statements of Belgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) over the 1997–2010 period. Using accruals quality as a proxy for the quality of SMEs’ financial reports, we find that the quality of SMEs’ financial statements is...