Public Economics Commons^™

Waqf Fund Management Through Micro Waqf Bank Program In Indonesia, Fachry Ganiardi Danuwijaya, Nurwahidin M.Ag

Journal of Strategic and Global Studies

Waqf is a muamalah activity that has a very important economic and social role in Islamic history. Waqf is one of solutions to the problem of poverty and social inequality in society. The establishment of the Micro Waqf Bank initiated by the government together with the Financial Services Authority (OJK) has played an important role as one of the new Islamic microfinance institutions in financial inclusion in Indonesia. This paper will discuss how the management of waqf funds through the Islamic Waqf Bank program based on pesantren in efforts to alleviate poverty and social inequality which has become a chronic …

Dissecting Public Expenditure : Part – Ii, Ishrat Husain Dr.

Faculty Research - Newspaper and Magazine Articles

Debt dynamics requires continued primary budget surpluses to be generated for gradually lowering the burden of interest payments and reducing public debt-GDP ratio. Revenue mobilisation of an additional 1.5 percent of GDP annually from those outside the tax net (divided evenly between the provinces and the federal government) insulating the lower-middle and poor classes appears a plausible means to achieve these surpluses. The pension bill is growing much faster than any other expenditure head and a switch has to be made from the present defined benefits to the defined contribution system. The results from tax and pension reform would appear …

Prospects For Valuation In Marine Decision Making In Europe, Rob Tinch, Stephen Hynes, Claire Armstrong, Wenting Chen

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

There is now high-level recognition that the UN Sustainable Development Goals can only be achieved if the decline of ecosystems and biodiversity can be halted and reversed. This will require effective control of ongoing pressures, meaningful protection and enforcement of protected areas, and significant investments in ecosystem restoration. This paper explores the possible use of economic valuation and appraisal in achieving these goals in marine systems and discusses the European marine policy instruments where they should have an important role The paper first briefly reviews the tools of economic valuation and appraisal for marine ecosystem management. A critique of the …

From Monterey To Galway: Evolution Of The Oceans In National Income Accounts, Stephen Hynes, Charles S. Colgan

Journal of Ocean and Coastal Economics

This paper provides an introduction and overview of selected papers from the 5th International Symposium on the Oceans in National Income Accounts organized by the Socio-Economics Marine Research Unit at the National University of Ireland Galway in March 2021. Eleven papers drawn from the symposium are included in this volume. The papers cover the current status of defining the ocean economy within national accounts, the expansion of ocean accounting to include environmental economic values, and methodological tools to assist the integration.

Local Revenue Development In Egypt / الإيرادات المحلية في مصر, Adel El Hemaily, Heba Yousry, Mohamed Hesham, Nada Bedir, Riham Soliman

Papers, Posters, and Presentations

Local administration in Egypt faces several challenges that hinder fulfilling its responsibilities towards citizens sufficiently. The main challenges are the lack of financial resources due to over-regulation as well as the non-enforcement of laws and regulations that allow the local administration to collect its own tax share, the local administration staff’s lack of skills to manage and develop revenue sources, and lack of accountability mechanisms. This policy paper seeks to propose policies to aid the local administration in increasing its financial resources.

In this paper, the authors depended on desk research as well as interviews held with officials from the …

Effect Of Health Aid On Life Expectancy In Sub-Saharan Africa, Sakiru Oladele Akinbode Dr., Isiaq O. Oseni

Journal for the Advancement of Developing Economies

No abstract provided.

Windfall Payment Savings: An Examination Of Act 13 Disbursements In Pennsylvania, Corey Young

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

State and local governments occasionally receive positive exogenous payments or windfalls that have a significant impact on their budgets. However, few works examine how budget-makers allocate such payments or if they are consumed in a manner consistent with other revenue streams. Prior research suggests that multiple factors, including the size of a windfall payment, impact how much of the funds are saved and spent. Using data from the Act 13 Unconventional Natural Gas Impact Fee in Pennsylvania, this study examines the relationship between windfall payment size and savings rates between 2011 and 2019. The results of the study indicate that …

Essays On Evaluating The Effects Of The Child Tax Credit, Hyein Kang

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

This dissertation consists of three essays understanding how the Child Tax Credit (CTC) affects maternal labor supply, maternal health, and children’s outcomes. The CTC was implemented in 1998 tax year and has been expanded multiple times throughout the past 20 years. Chapter 1 examines the effect of the CTC on the labor supply of single and married mothers using the numerous policy reforms in the credit generosity and eligibility criteria since its inception in 1997. I use variation in the simulated benefits for a nationally representative sample to estimate the labor supply response at the extensive and intensive margins. Using …

The Economic Obstacles To Electric Vehicle Adoption In Montana, Lily B. Duray

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Beginning in 2008, electric vehicles, otherwise referred to as EVs have increased in popularity. However, most rural areas like Montana still have not adopted these types of vehicles because of three major obstacles. By addressing EV driving range, availability of public EV charging stations, and the charging times of EVs, EVs can become a credible substitute for traditional vehicles in Montana.

Dead Money: Measuring The Influence Of Representatives On Government Spending, Adhitya Venkatraman

CMC Senior Theses

In line with popular criticisms of Congressional pork barrel spending, I find that that individual representatives do wield significant influence in securing government contracts for their districts. Using federal contract data organized at the congressional district level from FY 2001 – FY 2021, I estimate how individual members of the House of Representatives affect funding outcomes. My identification strategy leverages changes in contract funding that occur during exogenous vacancies occurring in the middle of a term. By comparing contract funding outcomes during vacant quarters to non-vacant quarters, I estimate the amount of individual influence exercised by representatives.

During vacant quarters, …

Three Golden Balls: Pawn Shops And Crime, Bryan Mccannon, Zachary Rodriguez, Zachary Porreca

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

We ask what the relationship is between pawn shops and crime. The dominant narrative is that pawn shops reduce the transaction costs of crime and, consequently, promote it. We explore the alternative where pawn shops address the financial distress of those in need, which reduces the incentive to engage in crime. We exploit two distinct policies affecting access to pawn shops − severe licensing fees implemented in London in the early 1800s and state variation in the classification of pawn shops as essential businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic in spring 2020. For each, employing a difference-in-difference identification strategy, we provide …

Ranked Choice Voting In Mayoral Elections, Bryan Mccannon

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

Numerous cities across the U.S. have recently switched to ranked choice voting in their local mayoral elections. Proponents argue that, by allowing voters to fully express their preferences over the candidates, voter satisfaction and, ultimately, turnout will improve. Opponents are concerned over the number of candidates who enter the race, as it increases the chances of someone only supported by a minority taking office. To date, there has not been an empirical analysis of ranked choice voting’s effects. First, using the Synthetic Control Method on three large U.S. cities who switched relatively recently, I explore the voting rule’s causal impact. …

Expert Witnesses And Arbitration Outcomes: Insights From Public Procurement Contracts, Bryan Mccannon, Claudio Detotto, Marco Vannini, Riccardo Marselli

Faculty & Staff Scholarship

We explore the use of expert witnesses in arbitration proceedings by analyzing public procurement contract disputes in Italy. Balancing cost with accuracy, participants to a contract select arbitration when speedy dispute resolution is valued highly. Arbitration mechanisms tend to give arbitrators discretion in how to proceed. Consequently, principal-agent problems can arise. Using an IV approach, we show that the use of an expert witness causes a slowing down of the case resolution, without having an effect on the outcome of the dispute nor resolving uncertainty as measured by unanimous decisions by the panel of arbitrators.

Essays On Immigration Policy, Andres Felipe Mira

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

Considerable interest has been placed on the subject of what to do with the sizable undocumented population currently residing in the United States. Having a full understanding of the size of this population and the impact immigration policy has on them is of critical importance to policy makers. Data limitations in nationally-representative surveys have limited the analyzes of the effects of immigration policy in the academic literature. As such, this dissertation consists of three essays contributing to the literature on the impact of immigration policy and on identifying unobserved populations.

In my first essay, I examine the labor market response …

The Leveling Spirit: Violence And Inequality In Postwar Iraq, Griffin Perrault

Honors Theses

The Iraq War (2003–2011) constitutes by some estimates one of the deadliest and most destructive conflicts of the 21st century (Hagopian et al., 2013). In addition to the disputed figures of excess violent civilian casualties––generally ranging from 180,000 to 210,000 deaths––the war has created one of the major refugee crises of modern times, with 1 in 25 Iraqis estimated to have been displaced from their homes by the 2003 invasion (Costs of War, 2021). While much of this violence has been wrought by American and Iraqi coalition troops, violence against civilians has also been perpetuated by insurgent groups and paramilitary …

The Case Of Singapore, Hwee Kwan Chow, Kong Weng Ho

Research Collection School of Economics

The economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Singapore was more severe and protracted than the global financial crisis. Singapore responded with easing of the monetary policy stance, reinforcing financial stability, helping individuals to reduce debt obligations, easing business cashflow constraints, adjusting financial regulatory and supervisory protocols to cope with immediate challenges, and enabling the financial sectors to build long-term capabilities. Fiscal responses were unprecedented with four consecutive budgets and two ministerial statements, initially focusing on immediate assistance in respect of jobs, businesses, households, and later refined to providing more sector-specific assistance as the pandemic evolved with more detailed information …

Climate Trailblazer Or Corporate Giveaway: An Economic And Political Evaluation Of Cap-And-Trade In California, Benjamin Reicher

Pomona Senior Theses

In this thesis, I conduct an economic and political analysis of California’s cap-and-trade program, the leading national (and international) example of a market-based strategy to reduce climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions. I evaluate the program on several economic and political measures of success, especially as contrasted with the performance of various regulatory policies that California also relies on to meet its emissions reduction targets. These regulations exemplify a command and control approach to emissions mitigation as opposed to a market-based approach, and indeed tend to be favored by grassroots activists who may be skeptical about market-friendly policies; my thesis seeks to …

Sustainable Strategies For Mass Rapid Transit Ppps, Sock Yong Phang, Bin Chye Tan

Research Collection School Of Economics

Mass rapid transit (MRT) PPPs have proliferated in the past two decades. This chapter provides a framework to categorise and understand alternative PPP designs. As MRT systems are inherently large, unprofitable and risky projects, PPP design is critical to project success and sustainability. We study the experiences of MRT PPPs in London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Beijing to understand factors underlying success and failure and to arrive at policy recommendations for PPPs. Policymakers need to have additional governance improvement and risk mitigation measures in place when tied supply chains are utilised. Hong Kong’s experience illustrates that ‘Rail plus Property’ strategy …

Covid-19 School Re-Openings: The Effect On Women’S Labor Force Participation, Isabella Difeo

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

As schools and daycares closed in March of 2020, mothers left the labor market in droves, either completely giving up their jobs or significantly cutting back on hours in order to care for children and/or help facilitate online learning. Furthermore, fields historically dominated by women were particularly hard hit, such as education, hospitality, and retail causing many women who may not be mothers to leave the work force as well. This paper considers how women’s labor force participation has changed throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and how the re-opening of schools, in particular, has impacted women’s return to the workforce. Triple …

Geographic Banking Discrimination In The United States, Simon Ross Gilbert

CMC Senior Theses

Financial institutions in the United States have historically discriminated against Black Americans in a multitude of ways. One potential dynamic of unequal access that remains understudied is geographic in nature. That is, are commercial banks less likely to locate in neighborhoods with more Black people? Using a fixed effects and selection on observables model, I find that a 1 percentage point increase in an area’s Black population is related to a 0.11 decrease in the number of commercial banks in that area. This effect is localized primarily in urban areas, particularly in cities in the Mid-Atlantic, Upper Midwest, and Pacific …

The Influence Of Political Party Affiliation And Park Accessibility On Covid-19 Case Incidence, Sascha Wolf-Sorokin

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the joint effect of political party affiliation and the urban landscape, as measured by access to parks, on case rates during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The 2016 and 2020 U.S. Presidential Election returns are used as a proxy for a county’s political party affiliation prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. A county population’s spatial relationship to its parks encapsulates the green open space within an urban environment. The data set controls for features of the built environment, socioeconomic and demographic characteristics (race, gender, income, education), COVID-19 government regulations, and presidential election returns. Using …

Economic Propaganda In The United States, Brooklyn Montgomery

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis aims to identify and analyze three different forms of economic propaganda: cultural, structural, and political. I first examine ‘Do What You Love’ culture and its impact on the labor force. Chapter Two explores the propagation of neoliberal economics as an objective study, and the final chapter analyzes the use of Black capitalism as a political mechanism to quell Black radical sentiment. In detailing these phenomenons, I investigate the implementation, normalization, and effects, as well as the material repercussions of these ideas and structures.

Disembedded Liberalism: The Global Pressure On Democracy, Hallie Spear

CMC Senior Theses

The international political order is at a crossroads with divergent paths. Liberal democracy is once again threatened on the international stage. What's more troubling is that the most stable and influential democracies, the United States, those in Europe and India, seem to be vulnerable to the autocratic wave sweeping through the world. This thesis completes a critical analysis to understand the root causes of the recent disruption to democracy the world has observed. Focusing on three established, diverse, and populous democracies, this thesis investigates the economic conditions at play that made each nation vulnerable to populism. Neoliberal economic policies implemented …

The Macroeconomic Impacts Of Government Debt In Pakistan, Ateeb Akhter Shah Syed, Kaneez Fatima, Junaid Kamal

Business Review

This paper examines the Ricardian equivalence hypothesis for Pakistan using a vector error-correction model. The sample period extends from June 2002 to January 2020. The results are reported using variance decompositions and impulse response functions. The base model contains six variables and is estimated with 4 lags. We find support for the idea that wealth does not increase as government debt increases; Hence, it proves the fact that economic agents are rational actors and foresee current expansionary actions of the government that result in accumulation of debt as the present value of future taxation that they have to pay and …

Three Essays In Healthcare Economics And Policy Analysis, Tuyen Pham

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation research consists of three essays on healthcare economics and policy analysis. Chapter 1 investigates and explains the failure of a proposition on limiting dialysis clinic profits in California in 2018. The proposition would have required dialysis clinics to issue refunds to patients or their payers for revenue that exceeds 115% of the direct cost of treatment. In this chapter, a conceptual framework of how voters weigh costs and benefits is developed and two different empirical approaches, simple OLS and Double Post LASSO, are employed to identify key determinants of the voting outcome. The empirical results suggest that counties …

Carbon Emissions, Abatement, And Natural Disasters: Politics And Social Institutions, Ritika Khurana

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation empirically examines three issues related to renewable energy and international development: 1) The Political Economy of Solar Initiatives in the Sunshine State; 2) Climate Change, Natural disasters, and Institutional Integrity; and 3) Institutional Integrity and Carbon emissions.

In Chapter 2, I empirically examine the outcomes of two solar energy amendments that were on the ballot in Florida in 2016. One amendment exempts solar energy devices from ad valorem taxation of real estate property, effectively decreasing the cost of solar energy for those who adopt solar photovoltaic panels. The other amendment reaffirms the right of property owners to install …

Essays In The Consequences Of Occupational Regulation, Noah J. Trudeau

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Occupational regulation affects many people across many aspects of life. This dissertation research investigates the consequences of occupational regulation across three different areas of study: economic history, urban and regional economics, and health policy.

The first chapter investigates the historic licensing of emigrant agents. In the period following the US Civil War, firms wished to capitalize on the availability of African American labor. To do so they hired emigrant agents, also known as labor agents, to hire and help with the migration of individuals from the South. Faced with out-migration at the hands of the labor force, some southern states …

Three Essays In Public Economics, Joylynn Michelle Pruitt

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation presents three chapters related to each other in their application to public economics. In the study of how utility-maximizing or goal-seeking units achieve economic outcomes, this dissertation presents results for a diverse range of agents including prosecutors and liberal arts colleges. Co-authored with Dr. Bryan McCannon of West Virginia University, the first chapter examines an interesting feature of prosecutor elections, where the pool of potential challengers to an incumbent comes primarily from subordinates within the office. We develop a signaling model that analyzes whether entry into the political race by a subordinate provides voters with useful information. In …

Corporate Taxes And Union Wages In The United States, Alison R. Felix, James R. Hines Jr.

Articles

This paper evaluates the effect of U.S. state corporate income taxes on union wage premiums. American workers who belong to unions are paid more than their non-union counterparts, and this difference is greater in low-tax locations, possibly reflecting that unions and employers share tax savings associated with low tax rates. In 2000 the difference between average union and non-union hourly wages was $1.88 greater in states with corporate tax rates below four percent than in states with tax rates of nine percent and above. Controlling for observable worker characteristics, a one percent lower state tax rate was associated with a …

Exporters In The Time Of Covid-19 Pandemic: Evidence From Indonesia, Realita Eschachasthi

Economics and Finance in Indonesia

The export of Indonesia has contracted rapidly in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. However, little is known about the crisis-trade relationship, which is important for the policymakers to design the relevant policies. To that end, this study examines how exporters adjust in the time of pandemic as well as estimates the impact of COVID-19 on export performance by using microdata of monthly export transactions from January 2019 to August 2020. This relationship is analyzed by employing intensive and extensive margins as well as a panel fixed effects specification. The result shows that capital goods, mainly manufactured products, have been hit …