Public Economics Commons^™

Municipal Fiscal Distress In Pennsylvania: Assessing The Municipalities Financial Recovery Act 47 Of 1987, Terry Tracy

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Department of Community and Economic Development administers a Municipal Financial Recovery program to improve outcomes in fiscally and socio-economically distressed cities. The program operates under the auspices of the Pennsylvania Municipal Recovery Act 47 of 1987.

It is designed to provide state and municipal governments the resources necessary to combat fiscal distress and economic decline, where municipalities lack the political or financial wherewithal to do so autonomously. Those resources include access to grant funding, special latitude over tax policy and fee structures not otherwise permitted by Pennsylvania’s Constitution, and developing a five-year fiscal recovery …

Essays On The Political Economy Of Governance, Yang Zhou

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation studies the governance structure and its economic impacts in the Chinese context. Specifically, I use a public choice framework to analyze how institutions influence economic and political activities of both public officials and private sectors. Chapter 1 employs the synthetic control method to investigate the effects of institutions to regional economic development. Chongqing Municipality, a province-level region in China, had a unique leader from late 2007 to early 2012 who conducted red ideology movements and legal intervention. The empirical results reveal that although the economic policies promoted the Chongqing economy, the Maoist political policies partially undermined its economic …

Economic Activity, International Intervention, And Transitional Governance: A Comparative Case Study Of Somalia, Daniel Bonneau, Joshua C. Hall

Economics Faculty Working Papers Series

This paper investigates the impact of international state-building efforts in Somalia on economic development. We use satellite data on night lights to measure economic activity to deal with nonexistent or poor-quality national income accounts. Using the synthetic control method, we find that the establishment of the Transitional Federal Government in 2004 was associated with economic stagnation relative to the years under statelessness. Using nighttime light emissions, we find economic stagnation regardless of whether we use the total lights emitted from the country or the spread of lights across the country. Our empirical findings are consistent with the idea that the …

Consumers Support A Slowing Economy, Eric Thompson

Business in Nebraska

Nebraska will record moderate economic growth during the forecast period but will lag U.S. growth. Like the national economy, growth Nebraska’s goods producing sector will struggle. Farm incomes will be flat from 2020 to 2022 after improving this year. Manufacturing employment also is expected to drop. However, most other sectors will expand, including services, finance and construction. Projected growth rates for 2020 to 2022 are presented in Table 1.

Employment will grow by 0.6% to 0.8% per year, below the national rate. Non-farm income will grow between 3.7% and 3.8% each year. This growth readily exceeds inflation and population growth, …

Contrasting And Synthesizing Perspectives On Late Stage Capitalism And The French Revolution, Alyssa Allen

Jessie O'Kelly Freshman Essay Award

The modern-day American wealth inequality epidemic coupled with the effective silencing of the masses through superdelegates and the Electoral College fosters conditions akin to Pre-Revolutionary France with the bourgeoisie being oppressed through wealth inequality and the Estate System.

Initial Measures Of The Economic Activity Linked To Bangladesh’S Ocean Space, And Implications For The Country’S Blue Economy Policy Objectives, Pawan G. Patil, John Virdin, Charles S. Colgan, M Gulam Hussain, Pierre Failler, Tibor Veigh

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

The Government of Bangladesh resolved its maritime boundaries in 2014, resulting in jurisdiction over ocean space equivalent to 80 percent of the country’s terrestrial area. To encourage the development of this area and the resources it contains, the Government embraced the concept of a “blue economy” in its most recent development plan, as a broad label for all ocean-linked economic activities that are environmentally and socially sustainable. To support the Government’s effort to translate its blue economy aspirations into operational policies, an accounting exercise was conducted to provide initial measures of Bangladesh’s ocean-linked economic activity, as a baseline by which …

Introduction To The Special Issue On The Blue Economy Of Bangladesh, Pawan G. Patil, Pierre Failler, Khurshed Alam

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

Introduction to the Special Edition on the Blue Economy of Bangladesh by the Editors of the Special Edition.

Ostromian Lessons For Post-Disaster Resilience: Evidence From The 2015 Earthquake In Nepal, Veeshan Rayamajhee

Economics ETDs

The dissertation is organized in six chapters. The first chapter provides a synopsis of the four research articles that are comprised in this manuscript. It outlines the goals of each article and connects them to specific Ostromian insights to shed light on the empirical findings. Chapters 2, 3, and 5 are based on a field study that I conducted in Sindhupalchowk, Nepal following the devastating earthquake in 2015. Chapter 4 uses case studies from Chicago, New Orleans, Nepal, and Indonesia. The final chapter summarizes major lessons from the four papers.

The second chapter investigates household-level coping responses to the 7.8 …

The Oppressive Pressures Of Globalization And Neoliberalism On Mexican Maquiladora Garment Workers, Jenna Demeter

Pursuit - The Journal of Undergraduate Research at The University of Tennessee

The international economic trends of globalization and neoliberalism have exposed and enabled the exploitation of Mexican workers, especially women in the maquiladora garment industry. During the 1950s, globalization gave rise to the new international division of labor and transnational corporations (TNCs) that have offshored labor-intensive phases of production to developing countries, many of which have pursued export-led industrialization. Export processing in Mexico was encouraged in the 1960s by Item 807 of the U.S. Tariff Code and Mexico’s Border Industrialization Program. Especially following the Latin American debt crisis of the 1980s, advanced capitalist countries and International Financial Institutions foisted neoliberal structural …

Connecticut Waterfront Property Premium In Areas With Flood Risk, Conor O'Donnell

Honors Scholar Theses

This paper investigates the premium paid for waterfront property along the Connecticut shoreline and how that premium is affected by its vulnerability to coastal flooding as measured by its location relative to the FEMA 100-year and 500-year flood zones. The primary analysis is a comparison of the rate of appreciation of properties within each flood zone relative to coastal properties outside the flood-zone. An analysis of the impact of Super Storm Sandy in 2012 on the appreciation rate is also presented. It is hypothesized that the rate of appreciation of properties within the 100-year flood zone is lower following Hurricane …

The Process Of Conducting Socioeconomic Research In Vietnam: An Internship With The Development And Policies Research Center (Depocen), Kira Le

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As Vietnam continues its rapid development, its government and people will be increasingly reliant on research organizations such as the Development and Policies Research Center (DEPOCEN) to study the socioeconomic issues that demand to be addressed in the interest of the sustainable development of the country. DEPOCEN is an independent research organization that has studied issues ranging from poverty and gender equality, to business & investment environment and trade liberalization. Since its establishment in 2005, DEPOCEN has developed collaborative relationships with many other research institutions like Oxford Economics and the Korean Institute of Economic Policy, and has offered its services …

Trends And Tariffs: Nebraska In An Aging Recovery, Eric Thompson

Business in Nebraska

Nebraska will record solid economic growth during the forecast period but will lag U.S. growth. Nebraska’s large farming sector is struggling and will not contribute much to economic growth during the forecast period. Job growth also will be sluggish in transportation and retail trade. Job growth, however, will be stronger in the services, finance, manufacturing and construction. Projected growth rates for 2019 to 2021 are presented in Table 1.

Employment will grow by 0.7% to 0.9% per year, below the national rate. Nonfarm income will grow between 4.4% and 4.5% each year. This growth readily exceeds inflation and population growth, …

New Jersey Urban Enterprise Zone Program Assessment 2019, Thomas Edison State University, Pel Analytics, Anderson Economic Group, The John S. Watson Institute For Public Policy

Urban Mayors Policy Center

In 2019, the State of New Jersey sought an evaluation of its Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ) Program to determine the program’s economic impact and make recommendations for the program’s future. The John S. Watson Institute of Public Policy of Thomas Edison State University joined with PEL Analytics and Anderson Economic Group to produce the following study. The main recommendation of this analysis is to retain the UEZ Program while instituting various changes to make it stronger. Recommended changes in brief include reinstating some form of Zone Assistance Funds (ZAFs), creating a better system to collect data and track outcomes, assisting …

Short-Run Health Consequences Of Retirement And Pension Benefits: Evidence From China, Plamen Nikolov, Alan Adelman

Justice & Well-Being Studies Faculty Scholarship

This paper examines the impact of the New Rural Pension Scheme (NRPS) in China. Exploiting the staggered implementation of an NRPS policy expansion that began in 2009, we used a difference-in-difference approach to study the effects of the introduction of pension benefits on the health status, health behaviors, and healthcare utilization of rural Chinese adults age 60 and above. The results point to three main conclusions. First, in addition to improvements in self-reported health, older adults with access to the pension program experienced significant improvements in several important measures of health, including mobility, self-care, usual activities, and vision. Second, regarding …

State Of The Northwest Arkansas Region 2019 Report, Mervin Jebaraj, David Sorto

State of the Northwest Arkansas Region Report

The State of the Northwest Arkansas Region Report is an annual publication, commissioned by the Northwest Arkansas Council, that serves as a tool for evaluating economic performance. In July 2018, the Northwest Arkansas Council created a new blueprint for development that outlines the peer regions and a strategic action agenda for 2018-2021. In this plan, the performance of Northwest Arkansas is benchmarked with other contemporary, high-performing regions, namely Austin, Des Moines, Madison, Durham-Chapel Hill, Raleigh and Provo-Orem. The 2019 State of the Region Report compares Northwest Arkansas with these geographies in the areas of gross domestic product, employment, unemployment, establishment …

The Economic Value Of A Place-Based Resource For Regional Development, Aisling Conway Lenihan, Helen Mcguirk

Dept. of Management & Enterprise Publications

Regional economic development has long been acknowledged as an important objective of government policy. Natural resources are also recognised as drivers of economic development. However, the importance of place-based resources such as peripheral coastlines and Harbour areas are less understood. This research provides insights into an industry based on its region’s natural resource and the value it generates for sustainable economic development. Using the world’s second largest natural Harbour region, the current research measures the economic activities associated with the Marine Leisure Industry in Cork Harbour, and estimates the economic impact on the local economy. The research establishes a multiplier …

A Mobile Solution To Drug Prescription And Dispensation With Privacy Protection For Developing Economies, Kingsley C. Nwosu

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

It is unarguable that many countries within the developing economies have not been able to reap many of the benefits from the innovations in Computer and Information Technologies (CIT) as they pertain to the advances in healthcare delivery systems. The contributing factors to the problems in these countries are multifaceted, such as, ethnic, cultural, environmental, governance, and infrastructural. To address these problems, current efforts have focused mostly on the issues of disease control and management. However, insufficient attention has been given to the concomitant problems of medication (drug / prescription) management especially as they relate to information management between patients, …

Determinants Of Cost Of Treating Water-Borne Diseases Among Rural Households In South West Nigeria, Alaba M. Dare, Idris A. Ayinde, Adebayo M. Shittu, Sammy O. Sam-Wobo, Sakiru O. Akinbode

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

This study determined the factors that influence the economic burden of water-borne diseases and the associated financial cost for rural households in southwestern Nigeria. A multi-stage random sampling method was used to select four hundred and thirty-seven rural households from whom data were collected for the study. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and cost of illness approach. The results revealed that an average household had six members with an average quarterly income of N80,717.52 (N160.00 = 1US dollar, at time of study). The sum of N28,571.36 was incurred as economic cost of water-borne diseases per household per quarter in …

All For One Or Each For Her Own: Do Polygamous Families Share And Share Alike?, Kristin Mammen

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

This paper examines whether the mother’s rank (whether she is a senior or junior wife) in polygamous households in Côte d’Ivoire injects favoritism that could lead to differential investment in children (based on mother’s rank), a concern that could cause an inefficient allocation of household resources. The hypothesis is that the younger is a junior wife relative to the senior wife, the greater favoritism she will receive from the husband, and the better her children will fare. This question is analyzed employing Ordinary Least Squares on a Living Standards Measurement Survey microdataset collected by the World Bank. An interesting pattern …

Credit Constraints And Agricultural Productivity Of Rural Households In Nigeria, Olugbenga K. Omolade, Abimbola O. Adepoju

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

This study, employing descriptive statistics and the Endogenous Switching Model, examined the link between credit constrained condition and agricultural productivity of rural households in Nigeria. Findings show that under credit constrained condition, education, labour, technology and other production inputs were not optimally utilized by the households. Credit constrained households had lower productivity than a random household from the sample would have had. However, in credit constrained households, being a male-headed household implied higher productivity. On the other hand, high value of assets and cost of hired labour had negative effects on productivity, while level of education and access to information …

What Drives Differences In Management Practices?, Nicholas Bloom, Erik Brynjolfsson, Lucia Foster, Ron Jarmin, Megha Patnaik, Itay Saporta-Eksten, John Van Reenen

Journal Articles

Partnering with the US Census Bureau, we implement a new survey of "structured" management practices in two waves of 35,000 manufacturing plants in 2010 and 2015. We fnd an enormous dispersion of management practices across plants, with 40 percent of this variation across plants within the same frm. Management practices account for more than 20 percent of the variation in productivity, a similar, or greater, percentage as that accounted for by R&D, ICT, or human capital. We fnd evidence of two key drivers to improve management. The business environment, as measured by right-to-work laws, boosts incentive management practices. Learning spillovers, …

Policy, Aggregate Productivity And Misallocation, Guowen Chen

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation explores the effects of factors such as industrial policy and listing on the stock market on manufacturing firms’ profitability and productivity.

The second chapter investigates the effect of industrial policies on misallocation using a rich data-set of Chinese firms. Using a difference-in-difference approach, I provide evidence that government policies (i.e. the 10^th Five Year Plan) favoring particular industries lead to increased misallocation (i.e., an increase in the dispersion of revenue productivity across firms in four-digit industries). Moreover, the differential changes between industries supported and not supported by the 10^th Five Year Plan are quantitatively large and …

The Legalization Of Street Vending In Los Angeles: Exploring The Impact On Vendors And Their Livelihoods, Karen Alpuche Caceres

Pomona Senior Theses

This thesis aims to unpack the impact the legalization of street vending and the subsequent regulation had on sidewalk vendors. Although legalization occurred state-wide through Senate Bill 946 in September of 2017, the rules and regulations for vending were passed at a city-level, and I am focusing on the City of Los Angeles specifically. Through interviews with government officials, non-profit partners and advocates, and vendors from different parts of the City, I analyze information around the policy itself, its history, and the impact it has and is expected to have on vendors and their businesses. While vendors have been central …

Professional Sports, Hurricane Katrina, And The Economic Redevelopment Of New Orleans: Revisited, Victor Matheson, Robert Baade, Callan Henderschott

Economics Department Working Papers

Hurricane Katrina devastated the city of New Orleans in late August 2005, resulting in damage to much of the city’s sports infrastructure and the temporary departure of both of New Orleans’ major league professional sports teams, the National Football League Saints and the National Basketball Association Hornets. The city spent over $500 million restoring the sports infrastructure in New Orleans, and both teams subsequently returned to the city. In addition, New Orleans has since hosted numerous mega-sporting events including the Super Bowl, NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four, and several college football national championships. This paper examines the economic impact of …

The Rise And Fall (And Rise And Fall) Of The Olympic Games As An Economic Driver, Victor Matheson

Economics Department Working Papers

This paper traces the economic history of major sporting events focusing on the Olympics. Historically, the Olympic Games as well as other major sporting events have been considered costly events that place a burden on host cities. Only in relatively recent years, coinciding with the massive increases in the cost of hosting these events, have event organizers begun to claim that these events bring with them large economic benefits.

Point/Counterpoint: Is There A Case For Subsidizing Sports Stadiums?, Victor Matheson

Economics Department Working Papers

In recent decades, governments have committed enormous public resources to subsidize construction of new stadiums, and the dollar value of taxpayer contributions for these subsidies continues to climb. Spending of taxpayer dollars includes both direct subsidies from state and local governments, as well as indirect subsidies from the use of tax-exempt bonds to finance construction. In granting stadium subsidies, governments claim that the stadiums are a public good that attracts tourists and businesses, thereby generating increased spending and job creation—benefits that flow to the community rather than to team owners. But do such benefits exist, and are they large enough …

Analysis Of The Economic Development Of Statesboro, Georgia’S Blue Mile: A Structural Approach For Diversification, Cadence Dwyer

Honors College Theses

The Blue Mile has become a center for Statesboro’s Economic Development plan of business diversification and downtown revitalization. Downtown revitalization is important not only to existing businesses but also to expanding the property tax base. The gauging of revitalization and diversification in the field of community development has been overlooked in favor of qualitative generalizations. Burayidi’s Scorecard is used as a basis to establish a standard for the structural analysis tests conducted to measure business diversification.

Moderate Growth With A Stronger Industrial Sector, Eric Thompson

Business in Nebraska

Nebraska will record solid economic growth during the forecast period but will lag U.S. growth. While Nebraska’s large farming sector has stabilized, it will not contribute much to economic growth during the forecast period. Job growth also will be sluggish in transportation, retail trade and state and local government. Job growth, however, will be stronger in the services, finance, manufacturing and construction. Projected growth rates for 2018 to 2020 are presented in Table 1.

Employment will grow by 0.8% to 1.0% per year, below the national rate. Non-farm income will grow between 3.6% and 3.8% each year. This growth is …

A Commentary On Litigation Involving Uber Technologies, Inc., Catherine Hagemeier

Economics Undergraduate Honors Theses

Uber Technologies, Inc. is a peer-to-peer ridesharing, food delivery, and transportation network managed in San Francisco, California. Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp developed the idea for the ridesharing app in 2008, after experiencing difficulty hailing a cab. They originally designed the app to be used in major metropolitan areas, but the business inevitably took off; it now operates in 633 cities worldwide. In 2017, Uber claimed that the company earned roughly $7.5 billion in revenue, employed more than 12,000 “independent drivers,” and connected over one billion people (“Finding the Way”). Though widely successful and heralded as a major influencer in …

Literacy Rates Analysis: An International Comparison, Macarena Arce

Economics Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper attempts to provide a more complete reckoning of the economics of literacy rates around the world. It consists on a literature review about the economic benefits and costs of literacy rates and then it shows two econometrics models that attempt to predict literacy rates based on GDP, government expenditure, and several other independent variables.