Semester
Spring
Date of Graduation
2012
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Type
PhD
College
Chambers College of Business and Economics
Department
Economics
Committee Chair
Santiago Pinto
Abstract
This dissertation consists of three essays which examine the role political economy factors play in influencing state-level public finance in the United States. In Chapter 1, I introduce the economic logic explaining why political economy factors affect public finance. I then give a brief summary of the three essays presented in Chapters 2-4. Chapter 2 investigates the role tobacco special-interest groups, state ideology, and a number of public finance variables play in determining the state cigarette tax rate. Chapter 3 introduces a new methodology, using spatial econometrics, to investigate tax competition in cigarette tax rates. Chapter 4 examines the disparity in tobacco control spending, specifically investigating states with strong tobacco special-interests.
Recommended Citation
Hoffer, Adam J., "Three Essays on the Political Economy of Public Finance" (2012). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 4866.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/4866