The note documents and discusses the modalities and consequences of the phenomenon of siphoning profits of state enterprises for private uses by state enteprise managers and insiders in Bulgaria during the period of early transition.

Meeting government revenue needs without inhibiting private sector development is a key challenge of tax policy during the transition from the socialist system. The paper explores issues in the design of tax bases and tax structures in the transition and argues that transition economies would...

The paper uses the 1992 household survey for Bulgaria to show poor revenue performance of the income tax structure prevailing in 1992, which did not take into account the underlying distribution of income. The paper shows that Bulgaria can benefit from a much lower and simpler income tax rate...

The paper measures economic loss from the problem of inadequate collateral in Bulgaria and proposes solutions consisting of creation of security interests, perfection, and enforcement.

An article reviewing Bulgaria's early market reforms implemented under harsh external conditions and considerable dislocation of the local economy. The article predicted that realistic growth scenarios for must be predicated on a debt and debt service reduction on Bulgaria's large external...

This paper utilizes the 1992 household budget survey of Bulgaria to show the poor revenue effects of the income tax structure prevailing in 1992 which did not take into account the underlying distribution of income. We also show that Bulgaria can benefit from a much simpler and lower income tax...

The paper reviews Bulgaria's inter-governmental finances and the process of fiscal decentralization during the early transition (1990-95) from centrally planned to a market economy. The paper discusses salient features and reform issues in tax assignments, inter-governmental relations,...

An early review of the general phenomenon of the transition - privatization of profits of state enterprises - in the case of Bulgaria, highlighting its impact on the pace of privatization and tax reform

The paper reviews legal, institutional and enforcement problems behind the lack of collateral credit to private firms in the early transition in Bulgaria. It also quantifies the cost of these problems and outlines an approach to reform of collateral institutions in order to increase the supply...