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State Tax Competition for Foreign Direct Investment: A Winnable War?

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Author Info
Ronald B. Davies () (University of Oregon Economics Department)

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Abstract

When a multinational firm invests in a country, potential host states compete for the firm by offering firm-specific tax reductions. Critics blast such incentives as a prisoner’s dilemma that transfers rents to the firm without affecting the investment decision. In fact, these incentives are tied to the firm’s use of domestic inputs indicating that incentives affect output decisions. If there exist positive interstate spillovers, a federal subsidy is necessary to reach the national optimum without tax competition. Competition reduces state taxes and thus the need for federal subsidies. Also, under competition, the firm locates in the nation’s preferred location. Therefore, tax competition offers two means of increasing national welfare, indicating that it is not a simple prisoner’s dilemma.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by University of Oregon Economics Department in its series University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers with number 2000-4.

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Length: 29
Date of creation: 01 May 2000
Date of revision: 01 Jul 2002
Handle: RePEc:ore:uoecwp:2000-4

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business
H25 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Business Taxes and Subsidies
R38 - Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics - - Production Analysis and Firm Location - - - Government Policies; Regulatory Policies

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:

  1. Figlio, David N. & Blonigen, Bruce A., 2000. "The Effects of Foreign Direct Investment on Local Communities," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 338-363, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Hwang, Hae-shin & Choe, Byeongho, 1995. "Distribution of factor endowments and tax competition," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 655-673, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Bond, Eric W & Samuelson, Larry, 1986. "Tax Holidays as Signals," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(4), pages 820-26, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Head, Keith & Ries, John & Swenson, Deborah, 1995. "Agglomeration benefits and location choice: Evidence from Japanese manufacturing investments in the United States," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(3-4), pages 223-247, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  5. Haufler, Andreas & Wooton, Ian, 1999. "Country size and tax competition for foreign direct investment," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(1), pages 121-139, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  6. Gordon, Roger H, 1983. "An Optimal Taxation Approach to Fiscal Federalism," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 98(4), pages 567-86, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  7. Blomstrom, Magnus & Kokko, Ari, 1998. " Multinational Corporations and Spillovers," Journal of Economic Surveys, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 12(3), pages 247-77, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  8. Edwards, Jeremy & Keen, Michael, 1996. "Tax competition and Leviathan," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 113-134, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Wilson, John Douglas, 2005. "Welfare-improving competition for mobile capital," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(1), pages 1-18, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Kanbur, Ravi & Keen, Michael, 1993. "Jeux Sans Frontieres: Tax Competition and Tax Coordination When Countries Differ in Size," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(4), pages 877-92, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  11. DePeter James A. & Myers Gordon M., 1994. "Strategic Capital Tax Competition: A Pecuniary Externality and a Corrective Device," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 66-78, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Devereux, Michael P & Lockwood, Ben & Redoano, Michela, 2002. "Do Countries Compete Over Corporate Tax Rates?," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 642, University of Warwick, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
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  13. Ian King & R. Preston McAfee & Linda Welling, 1993. "Industrial Blackmail: Dynamic Tax Competition and Public Investment," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 26(3), pages 590-608, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Markusen, James R. & Morey, Edward R. & Olewiler, Nancy, 1995. "Competition in regional environmental policies when plant locations are endogenous," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(1), pages 55-77, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Head, C. Keith & Ries, John C. & Swenson, Deborah L., 1999. "Attracting foreign manufacturing: Investment promotion and agglomeration," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 197-218, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  16. King, Ian & Welling, Linda, 1992. "Commitment, Efficiency and Footloose Firms," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 59(233), pages 63-73, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  17. Rauscher, Michael, 1994. "Environmental Regulation and the Location of Polluting Industries," CEPR Discussion Papers 1032, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Mintz, Jack & Tulkens, Henry, 1986. "Commodity tax competition between member states of a federation: equilibrium and efficiency," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 133-172, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  19. Zodrow, George R. & Mieszkowski, Peter, 1986. "Pigou, Tiebout, property taxation, and the underprovision of local public goods," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 356-370, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  20. Black, Dan A & Hoyt, William H, 1989. "Bidding for Firms," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(5), pages 1249-56, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  21. Wilson, John D., 1986. "A theory of interregional tax competition," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 296-315, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Bruce A. Blonigen & Van Kolpin, 2003. "Technology, Agglomeration, and Regional Competition for Investment," University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers 2003-21, University of Oregon Economics Department, revised 01 Sep 2003. [Downloadable!]
  2. Leon Bettendorf & Joeri Gorter & Albert van der Horst, 2006. "Who benefits from tax competition in the European Union?," CPB Documents 125, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis. [Downloadable!]
  3. Ronald B. Davies & Carsten Eckel, . "Tax Competition for Heterogeneous Firms with Endogenous Entry: The Case of Heterogeneous Fixed Costs," University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers 2007-7, University of Oregon Economics Department. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. Haufler, Andreas & Mittermaier, Ferdinand, 2008. "Unionisation triggers tax incentives to attract foreign direct investment," Discussion Papers in Economics 3752, University of Munich, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  5. Ronald B. Davies & Hartmut Egger & Peter Egger, 2003. "Tax Competition for International Producers and the Mode of Foreign Market Entry," University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers 2006-19, University of Oregon Economics Department, revised 10 Jun 2003. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  6. Andreas Haufler & Ian Wooton, 2007. "Competition for Firms in an Oligopolistic Industry: Do Firms or Countries Have to Pay?," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo GmbH. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Ronald B. Davies & Carsten Eckel, 2007. "Tax Competition for Heterogeneous Firms with Endogenous Entry," The Institute for International Integration Studies Discussion Paper Series iiisdp214, IIIS. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  8. Horst Raff, 2002. "Preferential Trade Agreements and Tax Competition for Foreign Direct Investment," CESifo Working Paper Series CESifo Working Paper No. , CESifo GmbH. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  9. Bruce A. Blonigen & Van Kolpin, 2001. "Technology, Agglomeration, and Regional Competition for Investment," University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers 2001-10, University of Oregon Economics Department, revised 01 Jun 2001. [Downloadable!]
  10. Bruce A. Blonigen & Van Kolpin, 2002. "Technology, Agglomeration, and Regional Competition for Investment," NBER Working Papers 8862, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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