Spatial interactions in local public debt. Evidence from Poland
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18559/ebr.2023.3.751Keywords:
municipalities, dynamic spatial Durbin model, debt persistenceAbstract
The aim of the paper is to investigate spatial interactions among the debt of 2,442 municipalities in Poland over the period 2005–2020. Using dynamic spatial Durbin model with two-way fixed effects it provides empirical evidence of positive spatial interactions. It is estimated that an increase in debt per capita in a given municipality by PLN 100 leads to an increase in the debt per capita in neighbouring municipalities by PLN 8–10. The result is robust to the various specifications of spatial weight matrix (contiguity vs. inverse-distance with a cut-off). It is also found that municipal debt in Poland suffers from high persistence over time.
Downloads
References
Act. (2009). Act of 27 August 2009 on public finance (consolidated text: Journal of Laws of 2022, item 1634 with amendments).
View in Google Scholar
Agrawal, D. R. (2015). The tax gradient: Spatial aspects of fiscal competition. American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 7(2), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2597976
View in Google Scholar
Agrawal, D.R., Hoyt, W.H., & Wilson, J.D. (2022). Local Policy Choice: Theory and Empirics. Journal of Economic Literature, 60(4), 1378–1455. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.20201490
View in Google Scholar
Balaguer-Coll, M. T., Prior, D., & Tortosa-Ausina, E. (2016). On the determinants of local government debt: Does one size fit all?. International Public Management Journal, 19(4), 513–542. https://doi.org/10.1080/10967494.2015.1104403
View in Google Scholar
Balaguer Coll, M. T. B., & Toneva, M. I. (2019). The importance of spatial effects in municipal debt. Revista de Contabilidad – Spanish Accounting Review, 22(1), 61–72. https://doi.org/10.6018/rc-sar.22.1.354311
View in Google Scholar
Banaszewska, M. (2018). Side effects of fiscal rules: a case of Polish local self‑government. Economics and Business Review, 4(1), 86–106. https://doi.org/10.18559/ebr.2018.1.6
View in Google Scholar
Banaszewska, M. (2022). Dochody własne w systemie finansowania gmin. Determinanty i implikacje. Poznań: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego w Poznaniu. https://doi.org/10.18559/978-83-8211-089-0
View in Google Scholar
Besley, T. J., & Case, A. (1995). Incumbent behavior: Vote seeking, tax setting and yardstick competition. The American Economic Review, 85(1), 25–45.
View in Google Scholar
Białek‐Jaworska, A. (2022). Revenue diversification and municipally owned companies’ role in shaping the debt of municipalities. Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, 93(4), 931–975. https://doi.org/10.1111/apce.12358
View in Google Scholar
Borck, R., Fossen, F. M., Freier, R., & Martin, T. (2015). Race to the debt trap?—Spatial econometric evidence on debt in German municipalities. Regional Science and Urban Economics, 53, 20–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2015.04.003
View in Google Scholar
Bröthaler, J., Getzner, M., & Haber, G. (2015). Sustainability of local government debt: a case study of Austrian municipalities. Empirica, 42(3), 521–546. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10663-014-9261-3
View in Google Scholar
De Siano, R., & D’uva, M. (2017). Fiscal decentralization and spillover effects of local government public spending: the case of Italy. Regional Studies, 51(10), 1507–1517. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343404.2016.1208814
View in Google Scholar
Dubois, E., & Paty, S. (2010). Yardstick competition: which neighbours matter?. The Annals of Regional Science, 44(3), 433–452. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00168-008-0273-4
View in Google Scholar
Działo, J., Guziejewska, B., Majdzińska, A., & Żółtaszek, A. (2019). Determinants of Local Government Deficit and Debt: Evidence from Polish Municipalities. Lex Localis-Journal of Local Self-Government, 17(4), 1033–1056.
View in Google Scholar
Ehalaiye, D., Botica-Redmayne, N., & Laswad, F. (2017). Financial determinants of local government debt in New Zealand. Pacific Accounting Review, 29(4), 512–533. https://doi.org/10.1108/par-11-2016-0104
View in Google Scholar
Elhorst, J. P. (2010). Applied spatial econometrics: raising the bar. Spatial Economic Analysis, 5(1), 9-28. https://doi.org/10.1080/17421770903541772
View in Google Scholar
Fan, G., & Lv, Y. (2012). Fiscal Prudence and Growth Sustainability: An Analysis of China's Public Debts. Asian Economic Policy Review, 7(2), 202v220. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-3131.2012.01234.x
View in Google Scholar
Ferraresi, M. (2021). Political budget cycle, tax collection, and yardstick competition. The BE Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, 21(3), 1149–1161. https://doi.org/10.1515/bejeap-2020-0380
View in Google Scholar
Ferraresi, M., Migali, G., & Rizzo, L. (2018). Spillover effects in local public spending. Regional Studies, 52(11), 1570-1584. https://doi.org/10.1080/00343404.2017.1415429
View in Google Scholar
Galiński, P. (2015). Determinants of debt limits in local governments: case of Poland. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 213, 376–382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.11.554
View in Google Scholar
Han, Y., Xiong, M., Cheng, S., & Guo, H. (2022). Inter-city competition and local government debts in China: a spatial econometric analysis. Asia Pacific Journal of Public Administration, 44(4), 271–290. https://doi.org/10.1080/23276665.2022.2071305
View in Google Scholar
Janeba, E., & Todtenhaupt, M. (2018). Fiscal competition and public debt. Journal of Public Economics, 168, 47–61. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2760353
View in Google Scholar
Kopańska, A., & Kopyt, M. (2018). Determinanty zadłużenia polskich gmin i miast na prawach powiatu. Analiza dla lat 2006-2016. Finanse Komunalne, 10, 5–22.
View in Google Scholar
Kornai, J., Maskin, E., & Roland, G. (2003). Understanding the soft budget constraint. Journal of Economic Literature, 41(4), 1095–1136.
View in Google Scholar
Lee, L. F., & Yu, J. (2010). Estimation of spatial autoregressive panel data models with fixed effects. Journal of Econometrics, 154(2), 165-185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconom.2009.08.001
View in Google Scholar
LeSage, J., & Pace, R. K. (2009). Introduction to Spatial Econometrics. CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781420064254
View in Google Scholar
Liu, D., Zheng, X., & Yu, Y. (2022). Public debt competition in local China: Evidence and mechanism of spatial interactions. Regional Science Policy & Practice, 14, 91–105. https://doi.org/10.1111/rsp3.12509
View in Google Scholar
Ministry of Finance. (n.a.). Sprawozdania budżetowe. https://www.gov.pl/web/finanse/sprawozdania-budzetowe
View in Google Scholar
National Electoral Commission. (n.a.). Wybory ogólnokrajowe. https://wybory.gov.pl/index/?language=pl&tab=wybory&accessibility=off
View in Google Scholar
Navarro-Galera, A., Buendia-Carrillo, D., Lara-Rubio, J., & Rayo-Canton, S. (2017). Do Political Factors Affect the Risk of Local Government Default? Recent Evidence from Spain. Lex Localis-Journal of Local Self-Government, 15(1), 43–66. https://doi.org/10.4335/15.1.43-66(2017)
View in Google Scholar
OECD. (2021). Better Governance, Planning and Services in Local Self-Governments in Poland. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/550c3ff5-en
View in Google Scholar
Ogawa, H., & Wildasin, D. E. (2009). Think locally, act locally: Spillovers, spillbacks, and efficient decentralized policymaking. American Economic Review, 99(4), 1206–1217. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.99.4.1206
View in Google Scholar
Statistics Poland. (n.a.). Local Data Bank. Retrieved from https://bdl.stat.gov.pl/bdl/start
View in Google Scholar
Uryszek, T. (2018). Fiscal Sustainability of Local Governments in the Visegrad Group Countries. Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 6(3), 59–71. https://doi.org/10.15678/eber.2018.060304
View in Google Scholar
Wichowska, A. (2019). Determinants of debt in rural municipalities on the example of the Warmińsko-Mazurskie Voivodeship. Acta Scientiarum Polonorum. Oeconomia, 18(4), 121–130. https://doi.org/10.22630/aspe.2019.18.4.52
View in Google Scholar
Wilson, J. D. (1999). Theories of tax competition. National Tax Journal, 52(2), 269–304. https://doi.org/10.1086/ntj41789394
View in Google Scholar
Downloads
Published
Versions
- 2023-10-12 (3)
- 2023-09-29 (2)
- 2023-09-20 (1)
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Monika Banaszewska
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.