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Fiscal
Research Center1
at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies
The Fiscal Research Center (FRC) provides nonpartisan research, technical assistance and education in the evaluation and design of state and local fiscal and economic policy, including both tax and expenditure issues. The FRC mission is to promote the development of sound public policy and public understanding of issues concerning state and local governments. Established in 1995, the program helps provide information to state and local governments so they can make informed decisions about complex fiscal issues. The program has a full-time staff and affiliated faculty from throughout Georgia State University and elsewhere who lead its research projects.
One of the objectives of the FRC is to help inform and stimulate debate on fiscal policy. The Center publishes Policy Briefs, which are widely distributed summaries of longer reports, as well as essays on issues confronting the state. The program also organizes periodic Seminars, Workshops, Luncheons and Conferences during which fiscal policy makers, administrators, and faculty discuss fiscal policy issues. David L. Sjoquist is Director of the Fiscal Research Center, and Sally Wallace is Associate Director.
In This Page:
• Research Agenda
• Reports
• Visitors and Other Activities
• Projects
• Technical Assistance
The research agenda of the Fiscal Research Program is composed of three broad categories: Intergovernmental Issues, Tax Policy, and the Georgia Economy. Each category is comprised of a set of projects that are FRC focus areas for state policy. Lead researchers for each project are identified.
Intergovernmental Issues:
Education Finance Project. Explores issues associated with education financing and delivery of education in Georgia.
Georgia Intergovernmental Forum. Explores issues inherent in relationships between state and local governments.
Tax and Expenditure Policy:
Business Tax Project. Addresses the taxation of banking, insurance, and corporations.
Income Tax Project. Analyzes the structure and impact of income taxation.
Property Tax Project. Focuses on the structure, administration, and effects of property taxation.
Sales and Excise Tax Project. Studies of the structure, administration, and effects of sales and excise taxation.
Tax Modeling Project. Involves the development of a sophisticated computer-based model for use in the analysis of tax policy proposals.
Telecommunication/Public Utilities Project. Focuses on alternatives in the taxation of public utilities.
State Budget Project. Concerns policy issues associated with government budgeting.
The Georgia Economy:
Economic Development Project. Addresses the many issues relevant to the state's economic development efforts.
Georgia Data Project. Involves development of a database built on the Unemployment Insurance records from the Department of Labor, welfare records for the Department of Human Resources, and other agency databases.
Georgia Economy Project. Studies various sectors and aspects of the Georgia economy such as banking, changes in the distribution of income, and changes in the location of retail sales.
Georgia’s Taxes: A Summary of Major State and Local Government Taxes, 9th Edition. Jack Morton and Richard Hawkins. A handbook on taxation that provides a quick overview of all state and local taxes in Georgia. January 2003.
The Bush Economic Stimulus Plan: What Does It Mean for Georgia? Sally Wallace. This brief provides a summary of the President’s economic stimulus proposal. January 2003.
An Analysis of a Proposed New Economic Development Incentive. Kelly D. Edmiston, David L. Sjoquist and Jeanie Thomas. This report evaluates the likely impact of changing Georgia’s economic development tax incentive program. January 2003.
Twelve Years of Budget Growth: Where Has The Money Gone? Alan Essig. This report analyzes the growth in the state budget over the past 12 years and identifies specific policy decisions that caused and resulted in changes in budget. July 2003.
Local Government Competition for Economic Development. Kelly D. Edmiston and Geoffrey K. Turnbull. This report examines the factors driving community tax incentives for industry recruitment. July 2003.
The Economic Impacts of Environmentally Contaminated Sites on Commercial and Industrial Property Markets in Atlanta, Georgia. Laura O. Taylor. This report analyzes the impacts environmentally contaminated sites have on surrounding property values in Atlanta, Ga., and examines the feasibility of a tax-increment financing program to fund clean-up of affected sites. July 2003.
Getting Serious About Property Tax Reform in Georgia. David L. Sjoquist. This report lists problems with the property tax in Georgia and outlines a set of policy options for reforming the property tax. August 2003.
The Commercial Music Industry in Atlanta and the State of Georgia: An Economic Impact Study. Kelly D. Edmiston and Marcus X. Thomas. This report measures the commercial music industry’s economic impact on Atlanta and the State of Georgia. August 2003.
Single-Factor Sales Apportionment Formula in Georgia. What Is the NET Revenue Effect? Kelly D. Edmiston. This report provides an update of the static revenue loss and provides estimates of the indirect revenue effects from switching to a single factor sales apportionment formula. October 2003.
Financing Georgia's Schools: A Primer. Ross Rubenstein and David L. Sjoquist. This report provides an explanation of how K-12 education is financed in Georgia. October 2003.
The Economics of Cigarette Taxation: Lessons for Georgia. Bruce A. Seaman. This report provides estimates of the fiscal effects of increasing taxes on cigarettes. November 2003.
International Trade and Economic Development Strategy: Can Foreign Direct Investment Be Predicted? Bruce A. Seaman and Robert E. Moore. This study identifies factors that might be used by the state to better target foreign industries and countries that are more likely to be seeking investment opportunities in the U.S. December 2003.
Research and Briefing Memoranda
The Fiscal Impact is distributed to the State of Georgia General Assembly and staff. During 2003, The Fiscal Impact covered these topics:
- The Bush Administration Economic Stimulus Plan: Its Impact on Georgia
- Per Capita Income for States in the Southeast Region (1969-2000)
- Georgia’s Revenue Sources for County and City Government
- Education Spending Per Pupil in Georgia
- Effective County Millage Rates
- Estimated Loss of Revenues from Selected Changes in the Sales Tax
- Estimated Loss of Revenues from Selected Changes in the Property Tax
Georgia Budget Notes is also distributed to the State of Georgia General Assembly and staff. During 2003, Georgia Budget Notes covered these topics:
- FY 2004 Budget Brief
- FY 2004 Revenue Estimates
- Medicaid Overview
- Peachcare
- FY 2004 and FY 2004 Department of Community Health Medicaid Budget Proposals
- State Employment
- Budget Brief: Per Capita Taxes and Income
Additional research results and published memoranda are published as a part of the Atlanta Census 2000 project. During 2003, Atlanta Census 2000 published these reports:
- Geography of Race
- Geography of Age
- Geography of Household
- Geography of Income
- Residential Mobility in the Atlanta Region
- The 2000 Journey to Work in the Atlanta Region
- Geography of Poverty
FRC staff and associated faculty prepared the following Briefing Memoranda:
Analysis of Mixed Drink Fee and Tax Exemption for Underground Atlanta. John Matthews and William Smith
Coupling Georgia Income Tax to Federal Standard Deduction and Personal Exemption. Sally Wallace
Fiscal Issues Associated with SSTP. David L. Sjoquist
Fiscal Note: Film Incentives Legislation. Kelly D. Edmiston
Number of Georgia Income Taxpayers With Children. Sally Wallace
Pay Day Shifts. John Matthews
Payment in Lieu of Property Taxes. David L. Sjoquist
Potential Revenue Enhancement Options. David L. Sjoquist
Revenue Analysis: An Estimate of the Revenue Loss From the Elimination of the Income Tax on Capital Gains. Sally Wallace
Revenue From Removing Selected Sales Tax Exemptions. David L. Sjoquist
Single-Factor Sales Apportionment Formula in Georgia: What is the NET Revenue Effect? Kelly D. Edmiston
Taxation and the Elderly. Sally Wallace
The Fiscal Research Center was happy to host visiting scholars who traveled to Georgia State University to conduct research.
Richard Hawkins** (Assistant Professor, Department of Marketing and Economics at the University of West Florida) visited during the year. He worked with the Fiscal Research Program on projects of fiscal importance and the Ninth Edition of “Georgia Taxes: A Summary of Major State and Local Government Taxes.”
The Fiscal Research Center participated in several presentations to international visitors to the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. Visitors learned about various economic development research conducted in the FRC and the Young School.
The FRC hosted seminars and visiting lecturers on the following subjects:
Andy Reschovsky (University of Wisconsin) spoke on adequacy of school finance, January 2003.
Michael Stoll (University of California) spoke on urban labor markets, geographic skills mismatch, job skills, and race, February 2003.
David Figlio (University of Florida) spoke on the consequences of school accountability, testing crime and punishment, February 2003.
In September, the Fiscal Research Program co-sponsored with the Urban and Regional Group, conference on "Current Issues in Urban and Real Estate Economics." Participants included a select group of informed individuals including representatives from government, the private sector, and academia. Discussants included:
- Jan Brueckner (University of Illinois)
- Peter Colwell (University of Illinois)
- Jonathan Dombrow (University of Illinois)
- Alan Gelfand (Duke University)
- Allen Goodman (Wayne State University)
- Donald Haurin (Ohio State University)
- Harold Munneke (University of Georgia)
- Henry Pollakowski (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
- C.F. Sirmans (University of Connecticut)
- Thomas Thibodeau (Southern Methodist University)
- Geoffrey Turnbull (Georgia State University)
African American Philanthropy. David L. Sjoquist. Funded by the Community Foundation, this project identifies trends in social capitol related to philanthropy in Metro Atlanta. ($24,000)
Analysis of Georgia Tobacco Taxes. David L. Sjoquist. Funded by Georgia Healthcare, this project looks at the effects of taxation on cigarettes. ($5,000)
Analysis of Strategic Management. Theodore Poister. Funded by the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT), this project analyzes performance monitoring, reporting systems, and management practices of the GDOT comparative case studies of three other state DOTs. ($221,250)
Atlanta Outreach Consortium. David L. Sjoquist. The collaborative activity is supported with funding from Clark Atlanta University, Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Georgia State University. ($37,500)
Enhance Atlanta Census. David L. Sjoquist. Funded by the Community Foundation, this project further develops the Atlanta Census 2000 Web site in cooperation with the Atlanta Regional Commission. ($9,000)
Evaluation of Performance and Impact of HOPE VI Community Revitalization (Harris Homes). David L. Sjoquist, James Wolk, Fred Brooks, and Sally Wallace. This project will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the impact of the HOPE VI revitalization program at Harris Homes for the Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, Georgia. ($491,937)
Film and Video Impact Study. David L. Sjoquist. Funded by the Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism, this project examines the impact of the commercial music industry on Atlanta and the State of Georgia. ($4,500)
Framework for Forecasting Welfare Caseloads in Georgia. David L. Sjoquist and Shiferaw Gurmu. This project, being conducted for the Georgia Department of Human Resources, proposes alternative modeling approaches to the development of a framework for generating monthly and quarterly forecasts of welfare caseloads in Georgia. ($17,169)
Welfare to Work Dynamics. Julie L. Hotchkiss. Funded by the University of Baltimore, Maryland, this grant supports research on evaluation of the transition from welfare to work. ($80,000)
The FRC staff and associated faculty provided technical assistance to numerous government officials and agencies. These included:
- Georgia Governor's Office
- Senate Research Office
- Office of Planning and Budget
- Georgia Occupational Review Council
- Georgia Governor's Education Review Commission
- Senate Insurance Committee
- House Insurance Committee
- House Insurance Premium Study Committee
- Georgia Department of Human Resources
- Georgia Department of Labor
- Armstrong State University
- State of Georgia Budgetary Responsibility Oversight Committee
- Joint Study Committee on Franchise Fees and Conditions, Rights of Way, and Tax Implications of Competitive Markets
- Technical Advisory Council (TAC) to the Georgia Rural Development Council
- Georgia Quality Growth Partnership (and its Legislative Committee)
- Georgia Economic Developers Association
- University of Georgia
- Board of Regents
- Georgia Department of Revenue
- City of Atlanta
- Georgia Municipal Association
- Georgia Department of Industry, Trade and Tourism
- Senate Appropriations Committee
- Senate Finance Committee
- House Ways and Means Committee
- Commission for a New Georgia, Rural Development Council
- Association County Commissioners of Georgia
In addition, Alan Essig served as staff director for the State of Georgia House of Representative’s Appropriations Committee. Jeanie Thomas and Benjamin Scafidi served as policy staff for the State of Georgia Governor’s Office.
1. For a complete listing of AYSPS Active Research Sponsored Grants from CY2003, see the Appendix: Report on External Funding.
