Search Results
Working Paper
Are income taxes destined to rise? the fiscal imbalance and future tax policy
We present a model of optimizing government behavior in which a need for increased revenue leads to the introduction of a new revenue source, such as a VAT, accompanied by a reduction in income taxes. We argue that this is a plausible outcome for the United States, in view of international experience and recent fiscal reform proposals, and has important implications for individual investment decisions.
Journal Article
Noteworthy: New Texans, Mexican population, higher education
Encouraging signs are present in manufacturing and services, with a marked pickup in temp employment and initial signs that direct hiring is on the upswing.
Working Paper
Autocracy, democracy, bureaucracy, or monopoly: can you judge a government by its size?
We develop a simple theoretical framework to examine on an integrated basis how the form of government affects its power and size. The analytical framework abstracts from distortions that arise from the means ofgovernment finance and separates government power into two dimensions-pure coercive power and pure monopoly power. A government can exert its coercive power to shift the demand for its services outward and/or its monopoly power to restrict the output along a given demand curve to earn rents. Among the implications drawn from the analysis are that government officials have an incentive ...
Journal Article
Regional update : Texas economy expanding at moderate pace
Journal Article
Welfare reform revisited
Lowest-Income Workers See Accelerated Earnings Growth During Pandemic
In many respects, the pandemic has disproportionately harmed low-income workers. Earnings growth, triggered by labor shortages and high turnover rates, could be a rare exception.
Journal Article
Falling off the fiscal cliff
Some suggest the best alternative strategy may be to combine short-term spending with longer-term fiscal consolidation?though such a strategy may be easier said than done.
Journal Article
Texas health coverage lags as Medicaid expands in U.S.
Texas is one of a handful of states declining to expand Medicaid coverage as part of the national health care program. The state has the largest number of uninsured residents, though more people have signed up for the low income health plan this year.
Journal Article
Determining creditworthiness and Texas' case for a top rating
To the ratings agencies, the AAA-rated states share one important trait: fiscal capacity, a superior ability to raise revenue within their borders to cover fiscal obligations.