In this revelatory book, Sudhir Venkatesh takes us into Maquis Park, a poor black neighborhood on Chicago's Southside, to explore the desperate and remarkable ways in which a community survives. The result is a dramatic narrative of individuals at work, and a rich portrait of a community. But while excavating the efforts of men and women to generate a basic livelihood for themselves and their families, Off the Books offers a devastating critique of the entrenched poverty that we so often ignore in America, and reveals how the underground economy is an inevitable response to the ghetto's appalling isolation from the rest of the country.

This book presents new data to give an overview of shadow economies from OECD countries and propose solutions to prevent illicit work.

The most disturbing aspects of the growth of underground economies are the interrelated problems of unreported and unrecorded income. A large and growing underground economy can thwart fiscal efforts to establish budget balance and may significantly undermine the veracity of a nation's economic information system. The notion that economic information is itself endogenous raises the possibility that at least part of the economic malaise observed in most Western nations during the past two decades is essentially the result of a statistical illusion. The essays in this 1989 volume examine the problems of defining, measuring and understanding the implications of the underground economies that have emerged in many of the world's developed nations. Empirical chapters examine the conceptual problems of how to measure a phenomenon that attempts to defy detection. Alternative measurement procedures are evaluated. Specific studies are included for the United States, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Norway, Canada, France, the Soviet Union and Hungary.

This easy-to-use guide covers the history, development, and current workings of cybercurrencies and the underground economy, both in the United States and around the world. The world of cybercurrency has experienced explosive growth in recent years, but that expansion has been accompanied by numerous controversies and misunderstandings about what it is, how it works, and how it relates to the underground economy and illegal activities such as money laundering, tax evasion, and human trafficking. Many illegal or malicious activities are paid for with cyber currencies. This book covers those applications. But cyber currencies also have many legitimate, constructive applications, all of which are explained in Rogue Money in clear, plain English, without embellishment or exaggeration. An authoritative and thought-provoking reference for readers seeking a greater understanding of all aspects of alternative cybercurrencies, this encyclopedia includes entries on economic history, international trade, current controversies, and its impact on the wider underground economy. It peels back the layers of jargon and obfuscation, giving each topic individual attention to show how it works and contributes to the whole.

From the back cover: The papers in this ground breaking book constitute a unique collection of information about the underground economy and how it is manifested in a variety of countries. Section One attempts to measure Canada's underground economic activity and provides a specific estimate of the impact that tax changes have on its size. It also looks at the problems of tax evasion and tax avoidance. Section Two deals with the size of the underground substance economy, the legal aspects of tlhe underground economy in the United States, and an asseeement of the economic activities of the Mafia. Section Three analyzes the underground economy abroad, specifically in the United States, Britain, Mexico, Peru, Chile, Russia and China. The fourth section returns to Canada and examines some policy implications of the underground economy. A survey detailed in Section One shows that a majority of Canadians believe that they do not receive enough benefits for the taxation they pay. Section Four offers a solution to the problem of tax evasion and underground economic activity; the adoption of user fees and user taxes.

This original and insightful handbook presents the latest research on the size and development of the shadow economy (also known as the black or underground economy), an integral component of the most developing and many developed countries' economies.

Comprises papers presented during the annual Public Lecture Series held at Western Michigan University. Examines problems of measuring the size and volume of underground economic activity by using estimates of United States currency holdings abroad and the illegal drug market as examples. Looks at juvenile delinquency and tax evasion to determine how economic policy may effect criminal behaviour.