Mature Fiscal Federal Systems: Aging with Grace or in Need of a Tune-Up

We apply the insights of Calsamiglia, Garcia-Milà and McGuire (2013) to identify efficiency-enhancing reform proposals for each of four mature fiscal federal systems, the systems in Australia, Canada, Germany, and the United States. We analyze each of the systems with an eye toward the two dimensions that are simultaneously needed for a guaranteed minimum system to be implemented: revenue autonomy of regional governments, and a common minimum level across regions for publicly provided goods that are essential to determining life opportunities. The second aspect is novel and, combined with the first, yields insights that differ from those found in the standard literature on fiscal federalism.