论税权二元结构及其价值逻辑

目前学界关于税权概念存在着一些争拗,而税收债权论和社会契约论的引入和运用,有助于对税权内涵及其本质的深层解构。显然,税权作为国家税权力与纳税人税权利的统摄,并非仅仅是一种语义上的概括,而是税权力与税权利互为债权债务关系表里的必然,其主体不仅包括行使税权力的国家,还包括授权国家行使税权力的纳税人,而且始终以保障纳税人权利的良好实现为依归。本文试图运用税收债权债务论和社会契约论来分析税权的概念和内涵,澄清税权的外观结构与内在本质,进而揭示宪政语境下税权结构生成的价值逻辑。     

涉警案件网民舆论及引导

当前涉警案件的发生在网络上容易引起网民的非理性批判,如不及时对其正确引导,极易导致网络舆论混乱。网民舆论具有群体极化现象突出、传播速度极快、负面影响极大三个特点。为加强对网民舆论的引导,应当加强网络舆论监管,完善信息公开机制,加强对网民理性思考的引导,强化新闻媒体的正面舆论导向。     

Open source software (OSS) governance in the organisation

Going into the century's second decade, Open Source Software (OSS) is ubiquitous. But there remains a disconnect between OSS use and its effective management. In order to ensure that OSS is used in a way which complies with relevant licence requirements and reduces risk (for example, of adverse action from the OSS community and IP leakage through unintended application of the ‘copyleft’ terms of the GPL2); organisations should consider putting in place an effective OSS governance mechanism. OSS governance should take account of the people context, seeking to get buy-in from all stakeholder groups inside and outside the organisation. The high-level OSS strategy should then be agreed between the stakeholders, consistently with other statements of operational strategy. The next level down is the OSS policy statement, which should be clear, brief, event-driven, able to settle 80% of OSS decisions arising day to day and set out what information is to be collected and tracked. Finally, appropriate processes should be put in place to take the strain of OSS governance. Organisations should consider appointing an Open Source Compliance Officer and acquiring a software based indicator tool enabling a number of key governance processes (code review, setting agreed ‘do's and dont's’) to be automated.     

Comment on Andrew S. Carron and R. Dan Brumbaugh,Jr.’s “The viability of the thrift industry”

Abstract

Krueckeberg summarizes Hernando de Soto's premise on property rights and offers a critical interpretation of de Soto's work, arguing that it emphasizes efficiency over equity and, ultimately, that enhanced property rights alone are unlikely to significantly improve housing stability or access to capital for households living in informal arrangements. I clarify several of Krueckeberg's discussions of de Soto's ideas from the perspective of the Institute for Liberty and Democracy (ILD).

The ILD perspective, informed by de Soto's writings, contrasts with Krueckeberg's in the following five areas: access to utilities and services in squatter settlements, the criminal nature of these communities, the ability of the poor to fulfill the responsibilities of formal ownership, their ability to borrow against formally owned property, and the impact of formalizing property on rental housing. I close by considering how the ILD perspective on formalization might be brought to bear in the United States.     

The preservation needs of public housing

Abstract

The paper examines the preservation needs of public housing from the perspective of its physical condition and its ongoing repair and replacement needs. It begins by examining the range of needs that exist today, including the level of expenditures that would be required to put the stock in working order to meet existing codes, and to ensure the long‐term viability of the development. It then explores the level of expenditures that would be required on an ongoing basis to keep the stock in good repair and to meet future capital and preventive maintenance needs. The final section addresses several important policy issues, including overall funding requirements, the cost‐effectiveness of preservation efforts compared with vouchers and new construction, the special problems of troubled public housing authorities, and the need to establish stronger incentives for capital planning.     

The changing geography of metropolitan opportunity: The segregation of the poor in U.S. metropolitan areas, 1970 to 1990

Abstract

This analysis uses census tract data to measure the segregation of the poor in U.S. metropolitan areas in 1970, 1980, and 1990. Two measures of segregation are used: the indices of dissimilarity and isolation.

In 1990 the mean dissimilarity of the poor in the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas was 36.1, which is substantial but below the 60.6 dissimilarity of blacks. The 1990 isolation of the poor was 21.0. From 1970 to 1990, the dissimilarity of the poor increased by 11 percent, and the isolation of the poor rose by 9 percent; in contrast, racial segregation declined. Exploratory regression analyses reveal that income segregation in metropolitan areas was significantly greater in 1990 and increased more from 1970 to 1990 in the Northeast than in the South and West. Midwest areas generally were not significantly different from Northeast areas in 1990 segregation levels or in changes from 1970 to 1990.     

The Low‐Income Housing Tax Credit An Analysis of the First Ten Years

Abstract

The Low‐Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) has been the de facto federal rental housing production program since its creation in the Tax Reform Act of 1986. In this article, using a detailed database on 2,554 LIHTC projects, we analyze the costs of building these projects, where they are built, their financial viability, whom they serve, who finances them, and the size of the subsidies provided to them.

The LIHTC is a flexible program that has built different types of housing in various markets. While LIHTC projects serve low‐ and moderate‐income households, their rents are beyond the reach of many poor households without additional subsidy. Revenues just cover costs for many LIHTC projects. Over time, considerably more of each tax‐credit dollar has ended up in the projects, and returns to equity investors have dropped significantly, perhaps reflecting an increased understanding of project risks. We estimate that LIHTC projects developed by nonprofits are 20.3 percent more expensive than those developed by for‐profits.     

Comment on Steven C. Bourassa and William G. Grigsby's “income tax concessions for owner‐occupied housing”

Abstract

Federal income tax deductions for mortgage interest and property taxes are defensible on grounds of both economic efficiency and the social benefits of homeownership. Homeowners should be treated as landlords renting to themselves; as such, they benefit because they do not pay a tax on the imputed rental income they receive, while rental property owners do. Both receive deductions for mortgage interest and property taxes, and both should.

The mortgage interest deduction generates symmetry between debt and equity financing of a home; if interest were not deductible, those whose income derives largely from property would have an advantage over those whose income comes from labor. Because workers would be disadvantaged, repeal is unlikely to generate the revenues Bourassa and Grigsby expect or modify the distribution of the tax burden in the way they favor. Finally, the deductions promote homeownership, which is socially desirable.     

The Tax Reform Agenda in Australia

This paper applies concepts developed in the Policy Agendas Project (PAP) literature to an analysis of Australian tax policy over the post war period. It argues that a major turning point in the Australian tax policy agenda occurred during the second term of the Hawke Government (1984‐87). Beyond this turning point, and despite the fierce partisan conflict concerning tax policy over the past two decades, there has been remarkaly little difference between Australia's two major parties at the level of substantive policy content. The Australian tax policy agenda over the post war period can be characterised by remarkable policy continuity punctuated by a period of change in the mid 1980s when structural change in the international political economy precipitated unprecedented domestic liberalisation.     

Compliance and non-compliance as sources of recognition: Slovakia and NATO

This article argues that there is a difference in what constitutes the sources of recognition prior to countries' membership in the Euro-Atlantic community represented by NATO and after countries become its members. While prior to membership, countries are recognized for their compliance with NATO standards and policies, upon membership countries get the opportunity to promote specific interests legitimately and may seek recognition via non-compliance with NATO mainstream.The paper explores this dynamic of recognition on the issue of Kosovo independence where Slovakia went from supporting NATO in its effort to protect civilians in Kosovo in the late 1990s to non-recognition of Kosovo in defiance of the majority of NATO member states less than a decade later. The crucial point proposed here is that there was a shift in how recognition by NATO worked prior to Slovakia's membership and upon membership in these frameworks. While prior to membership recognition was achieved by compliance and identification with NATO standpoints, policies and actions, upon membership, recognition is achieved by differentiation from these patterns. More generally, the study shows that NATO membership is a powerful source of conditionality in relation to future members and a powerful source of legitimacy in relation to current members' actions. While this has been discussed in the literature, the point here is that recognition in its various forms is an important driving force in these conditionality processes.