Devolution, fiscal federalism, and changing patterns of municipal revenues: The mismatch between theory and reality

Dale Krane, Carol Ebdon, John Bartle

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

40 Scopus citations

Abstract

Theories of fiscal federalism, such as those propounded by Musgrave, Tiebout, and Brennan and Buchanan, prescribe assignment of revenue sources among federal, state, and local governments. In this article, we demonstrate that the recent diversification of municipal revenue sources in response to devolutionary forces does not follow the expectations of the fiscal federalism theories. Our analysis suggests that the use of an institutional approach to the study of fiscal federalism would help to reduce the mismatch between theory and reality.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)513-533
Number of pages21
JournalJournal of Public Administration Research and Theory
Volume14
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2004

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Sociology and Political Science
  • Public Administration
  • Marketing

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