Template-type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Richard Bird
Author-Email: Rbird@Rotman.Utoronto.Ca 
Author-Homepage: 
Author-Name:Andrey Tarasov
Author-Email:
Author-Homepage:
Author-Workplace-Name: Andrew Young School of Policy Studies,Georgia State University
Author-Workplace-Homepage:http://isp-aysps.gsu.edu/index.html
Title: Closing the Gap: Fiscal Imbalaces and Intergovernmental Transfers in 
       Developed Federations
Abstract:This paper discusses the concepts of vertical fiscal imbalance (the fiscal gap)
 and horizontal fiscal imbalance (equalization) and uses several statistics to measure 
 these concepts for eight industrially developed federations: Australia, Austria, Belgium, 
 Canada, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States. Although the periods covered 
 and the detail provided vary from country to country due to limitations in data 
 availability, the overall coverage in this paper seems more complete and comparable 
 than in previous studies. The paper also outlines briefly the types of intergovernmental 
 fiscal transfers used to deal with fiscal imbalances in the eight countries under 
 consideration. Although this account is necessarily highly condensed, given the 
 complexity of transfer systems in most countries, the frequency with which changes 
 are made, and the difficulty of obtaining complete information, it is nonetheless 
 broadly accurate. 
Keywords: intergovernmental transfers, fiscal imbalances
Length: 58 pages
Creation-Date: 2002-03-01
File-URL:http://icepp.gsu.edu/files/2015/03/ispwp0202.pdf
File-Format:Application/PDF
Handle: RePEc:ays:ispwps:paper0202