Topics in this comprehensive survey include bureaucracy, corruption and tax compliance; public finance in developing economies; taxation in several former Soviet republics, Eastern Europe and China; taxation in the enlarged European Union; tax harmonization vs. tax competition; and the philosophy of taxation and public finance. The editor has assembled a stellar group of authorities to write about their areas of expertise.

Providing light to a subject that is not often enough discussed, The Political Economy of Taxation is packed cover to cover with thoughtful information, and a core addition to any international economic studies collection. The Midwest Book Review Paola Profeta and Simona Scabrosetti have provided us with a novel comparative analysis of the tax systems in Asia, Latin America and the new EU countries. Anyone who wants to know how contemporary empirical models can be used to study the political economy of the tax mix in developing and transition economies will want to read this book. Stanley Winer, Carleton University, Canada In this original book, Paola Profeta and Simona Scabrosetti use data and information on political institutions from developing and new EU member countries to investigate the political economy of taxation. How do political institutions influence tax burdens and tax structures? They generate highly interesting results. . . I am sure that this innovative book will attract the attention of many experts interested in taxation, regardless of the professional field to which they are anchored. I expect this book will be cited often. Vito Tanzi, International Institute of Public Finance, US Taxation is a major issue in the economic and political spheres. This book focuses on a sample of developing countries from Asia and Latin America that experienced an economic and democratic transition during the period 1990 2004. Using a unique dataset the authors show that tax revenue is higher in more democratic regimes, consistent with the standard view that democracies have to satisfy the redistributive needs of the electorate. They also find that a second relationship between the level of democracy and the composition of taxes (mainly direct versus indirect) is much harder to predict. However, a comparison with new EU member states suggests that more mature democracies are associated with higher levels of direct tax. This unique book in a relatively under-researched subject area will prove essential reading for academics, researchers and practitioners focusing on political economy, public finance and the economics of taxation.

In economic terms three of the most important and controversial issues of our times are transition, taxation and the role of the state. This book examines the core associated problems of tax payment and collection in the context of transition from a centrally planned economy to a market economy and the persistence of the 'soft budget' constraint. While differences between the experiences of transition states vary, the attitude of the state towards the control of the tax discipline, its efficiency and vulnerability to corruption is shown to be a key issue, in particular when political constraints are often more pressing than tax design or economic constraints. Transition, Taxation and the State will prove detailed and enlightening reading for all those concerned with tax administration in transition countries from both economic and political perspectives.

A collection of most of the papers and comments presented at the conference held in honor of Richard Bird in the spring of 2001. Section I: Intergovernmental fiscal relations; Section II: Tax evasion, tax administration and the role of government; Section III: Fiscal policy.

This book details the context within which policy decisions and objectives for the property tax system are made in the transitional economies of Central and Eastern Europe. It shows how these policy decisions evolve as a part of the transitional reforms still in process. This book offers the chance to review the experiences of transitional countries in initiating and implementing fiscal instruments during a decade of enormous transformations. The research for the case studies, included in this book, was sponsored by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Selection of studies relating to taxation in developing countries. The papers are organized under the following subjects: approaches to development taxation, lessons from experience, taxation and incentives, problems in direct taxation, the reform of indirect taxation, the role of local taxes, tax administration and tax policy. Contributors: Carl S. Shoup, Vito Tanzi, Richard Goode, Charles E. McLure, Richard Bird, Oliver Oldman, Sijbren Cnossen and many others.

The editor has assembled a stellar group of experts to address such topics as: accounting reform in Russia, Ukraine, Estonia, Armenia, Serbia, China, and Spain; accounting education and development of the accounting profession in several transition economies; and corporate governance issues in the developing world.