Most countries, developed and developing, are fiscally decentralized with regional and local governments of varying importance. In many of these countries, some of these sub-national governments differ substantially from others in terms of wealth, ethnic, religious, or linguistic composition....

This major Handbook addresses fiscal relations between different levels of government under the general rubric of ‘fiscal federalism’, providing a review of the latest literature as well as an invaluable guide for practitioners and policy makers seeking informed policy options. The...

Most countries, developed and developing, are fiscally decentralized with regional and local governments of varying importance. In many of these countries, some of these sub-national governments differ substantially from others in terms of wealth, ethnic, religious, or linguistic composition....

An important characteristic of many countries is that they exhibit, to greater or lesser degrees, some 'asymmetry' in the way in which different regions are treated by their intergovernmental fiscal systems. This paper explores some of the varied extents and manners in which such asymmetrical...

Reports on an empirical analysis of the exemption versus tax credit approach as it pertains to the general retail sales tax in a state.

State and local government fiscal systems have increasingly become vulnerable to economic changes. Over the past three decades, state and local deficits during economic recession have been larger and deeper each time. The impact of the Great Recession and its aftermath of feeble growth and...

The typical post-Bretton Woods era development approach that emphasized central government-led development efforts has changed dramatically, and local governments have clearly emerged as players in development policy. The thinking about what is important to achieve in development objectives is...

The focus of this paper is on the last set of these questions -- that of the capacity and the practice of decentralized infrastructure monitoring. The experience and practice of low, middle and high income countries alike is considered. The paper is organized as follows: the next section,...