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Ethnic diversity and citizens’ support for local public good provision: Evidence from California parcel tax elections

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  • Jones, Daniel B.
  • Zhan, Crystal

Abstract

How does ethnic diversity within a jurisdiction impact residents’ demand for local public goods? This question is central to the literature on diversity and local spending but remains relatively untested. To fill this gap, we study outcomes from California school district ballot measures to increase school funding. We use an instrumental variable approach to account for endogeneity in diversity. We find no evidence that diversity impacts willingness to be taxed to fund local schools. Our findings suggest that the negative effects of diversity on spending may be occurring through other channels, such as the decision-making of local officials.

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  • Jones, Daniel B. & Zhan, Crystal, 2020. "Ethnic diversity and citizens’ support for local public good provision: Evidence from California parcel tax elections," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 174(C), pages 108-130.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:174:y:2020:i:c:p:108-130
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2020.03.012
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    Cited by:

    1. Nadia von Jacobi & Vito Amendolagine, 2021. "What Feeds on What? Networks of Interdependencies between Culture and Institutions," DEM Working Papers 2021/13, Department of Economics and Management.
    2. Zhang, Zhijian & Wang, Xueyuan, 2022. "Birthplace diversity and private giving: Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    3. Nadia Jacobi & Vito Amendolagine, 2023. "What feeds on what? Networks of interdependencies between culture and institutions," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 40(2), pages 371-412, July.
    4. Amendolagine, Vito & von Jacobi, Nadia, 2023. "Symbiotic relationships among formal and informal institutions: Comparing five Brazilian cultural ecosystems," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 47(3).
    5. Nadia von Jacobi & Vito Amendolagine, 2022. "What Feeds on What? Networks of Interdependencies between Culture and Institutions," Working Papers 11, SITES.

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