Publication: The Development of Property Taxation in Economies in Transition : Case Studies from Central and Eastern Europe
Loading...
Published
2001-09
ISSN
Date
2013-06-20
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
The transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe, through the reform process of decentralization, are now seeking the devolution of fiscal powers, and responsibilities from central, to local governments, within financially sustainable environments. To this end, a system of local budgets, and taxes needs to be devised, over which local governments may have control. Thus, this report focuses on the tax on immovable real property, one of the most important local tax options, and, undertakes comparative analysis of tax policy formulation, within a context of rapid institutional changes. Case studies provide insights into the policy debates, and choices that guide the process of property tax reform, and, shed light on the entire cycle, from initial impetus, to resulting legislation, and the subsequent administrative challenges of assessment, collection, appeal, and review. Because of the multiple roles of property taxation (as an instrument of decentralization, an element of property rights, an adjunct to privatization and restitution, and a source of revenue), it is appropriate to consider its development in multiple contexts. Therefore, the cases range from first generation reformers, i.e., Poland, Estonia, Slovakia, and parts of the Russian Federation, to later efforts in the Czech Republic and Armenia. These cases aim to broaden the understanding of available alternatives, and their relationship to specific political, legal, and economic settings.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Malme, Jane H.; Youngman, Joan M.. Malme, Jane H.; Youngman, Joan M., editors. 2001. The Development of Property Taxation in Economies in Transition : Case Studies from Central and Eastern Europe. WBI Learning Resources;. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/14071 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Public Finance in China : Reform and Growth for a Harmonious Society(Washington, DC : World Bank, 2008)This publication focuses on public finance, development economics, and the Chinese economy. The government will focus on the public good aspects of education and training-compulsory education and some aspects of higher education and training. The publication encourages seven reforms including raising government expenditure on education to four percent of gross domestic product (GDP), and ensuring that all children actually receive nine years of basic education. Improving and widening access to medical care, especially for the rural population. The target is to extend the cooperative medical scheme to 80 percent of the rural population from the current coverage rate of just over 20 percent. China has sufficient fiscal resources to afford the level and type of spending commensurate with a harmonious society. This reallocation of resources can be done only gradually. It must go hand in hand with a better specification of roles and functions of the various levels of China and stronger mechanisms for accountability, to ensure that poorer local governments use the resources given to them.Publication China : Improving Rural Public Finance for the Harmonious Society(Washington, DC, 2007-11-21)This report aims to assist the government in improving implementation of the New Socialist Countryside (NSC) program, especially in raising the effectiveness of public expenditures, and the harmonization of public finance. While this report pays particular attention to rural aspects of public finance, it addresses this topic within the overall framework of intergovernmental finance that impacts both rural and urban areas. Similarly, the discussions and recommendations in this report are intended to move the system towards one that is harmonized and does not differentiate between 'rural' and 'urban' areas. The structure of this report is as follows: Chapter 2 analyzes the considerable number of reform efforts that have been introduced to the rural public finance system. It looks at the RFR in depth, as well as other associated and related reforms and evaluates the overall outcome of these reforms. Chapter 3 provides an overview of China's intergovernmental system as the framework for rural public finance. It includes an analysis of the expenditure and revenue assignments and their development, and the impact on rural public finance. The transfer system, an integral part of the intergovernmental fiscal system, is treated separately in Chapter 4 because of its overwhelming importance for rural public finance. The chapter analyzes how far the transfer system goes in addressing the fiscal imbalances and providing the necessary public funds for rural areas. It also assesses the role of earmarked transfers. Chapter 5 then looks at the public finance situation at the grassroots level, i.e., the financing of villages, townships, and counties, including how recent developments have impacted their situation and what remaining issues exist at these levels. Finally, Chapter 6 summarizes the findings of this study, proposes a strategy for policy reforms, and suggests ideas for its implementation.Publication Avoiding the Fiscal Pitfalls of Subnational Regulation(Washington, DC, 2011-12)Since investment climate reforms in developing countries started gaining traction in the 1990s, most efforts have focused on issues at the national level, achieving varying degrees of success for reasons that are relatively well understood. This handbook provides an overview of efforts and achievements in subnational investment climate reforms. It is organized as follows. Chapter 2 reviews a number of countries experiences with subnational reforms, noting both success stories and disappointments and pointing toward lessons learned. Chapter 3 sets out the basic principles of subnational revenue, including business taxation. Chapter 4 describes sound licensing practices for subnational governments, including establishing licensing fees. Chapter 5 provides recommendations for subnational reform projects where both the regulatory authority and taxation require attention, which is the most common situation. Finally, the Appendix offers nine case studies covering subnational reform efforts in the following countries: Canada (British Columbia), The Russian Federation, China, Kenya, Tanzania, Peru (Lima), The Balkans (Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina), Tajikistan, and Zambia.Publication Czech Republic : Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations in the Transition(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2001-11)The study overviews the most relevant, current intergovernmental fiscal issues in the Czech Republic, centered on the options available to prod policy planning. Fragmentation at the lowest tier of government is the most striking feature of the administrative structure. This suggests a strategic direction for further administrative reforms to sustain fiscal decentralization, which includes empowering territorial self-governing units; establishing a multilevel government coordinating body to define autonomous functions on expenditures, and revenues; and by creating financial and legal incentives to facilitate an asymmetric assignment of revenue and expenditure. Specific policy actions should include institutional inter-governmental cooperation and dialogue through a broad based commission to recommend regional expenditures, and the Budget Rules Law should be amended to preempt unfounded mandates to local governments. Revenue autonomy should be boosted by increasing predictability of local budgets, restoring tax-effort incentives, and reviewing the adopted adjustment coefficient for tax-sharing distribution; while a rationalized transfer system should focus on decreasing the number of specific subsidies, and prioritizing programs to stabilize transfers within a medium-term expenditure framework. Institutional framework and prudential rules would ensure fiscally responsible borrowing, and encourage a competitive financial market.Publication Croatia : Fiscal (De)centralization and Public Service Delivery(Washington, DC, 2012-01)This report discusses the contours of a possible strategic direction, the necessary basic institutional set up for implementation, and key reform policy options to be tackled in order to complete the foundations of the decentralization reform initiated in 2001. Croatia is still a highly centralized country in terms of decision making on public service financing and delivery, as compared to most of the new European Union members. One indicator is that the sub-national Government's budget still corresponds to five percent of GDP, while in the newly accessed countries it was about eight percent on average in their immediate pre-accession phase. The Government of Croatia is conscious about the critical importance of improving citizens' voice, transparency and accountability on public affairs, especially on matters of local interest, in order to increase efficiency on public service delivery and rapidly converge to European Union standards on a sustainable basis. The Government started its decentralization reforms in July 2001, although they have not yet adequately implemented them to make the reform process sustainable.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication World Development Report 2006(Washington, DC, 2005)This year’s Word Development Report (WDR), the twenty-eighth, looks at the role of equity in the development process. It defines equity in terms of two basic principles. The first is equal opportunities: that a person’s chances in life should be determined by his or her talents and efforts, rather than by pre-determined circumstances such as race, gender, social or family background. The second principle is the avoidance of extreme deprivation in outcomes, particularly in health, education and consumption levels. This principle thus includes the objective of poverty reduction. The report’s main message is that, in the long run, the pursuit of equity and the pursuit of economic prosperity are complementary. In addition to detailed chapters exploring these and related issues, the Report contains selected data from the World Development Indicators 2005‹an appendix of economic and social data for over 200 countries. This Report offers practical insights for policymakers, executives, scholars, and all those with an interest in economic development.Publication Classroom Assessment to Support Foundational Literacy(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-03-21)This document focuses primarily on how classroom assessment activities can measure students’ literacy skills as they progress along a learning trajectory towards reading fluently and with comprehension by the end of primary school grades. The document addresses considerations regarding the design and implementation of early grade reading classroom assessment, provides examples of assessment activities from a variety of countries and contexts, and discusses the importance of incorporating classroom assessment practices into teacher training and professional development opportunities for teachers. The structure of the document is as follows. The first section presents definitions and addresses basic questions on classroom assessment. Section 2 covers the intersection between assessment and early grade reading by discussing how learning assessment can measure early grade reading skills following the reading learning trajectory. Section 3 compares some of the most common early grade literacy assessment tools with respect to the early grade reading skills and developmental phases. Section 4 of the document addresses teacher training considerations in developing, scoring, and using early grade reading assessment. Additional issues in assessing reading skills in the classroom and using assessment results to improve teaching and learning are reviewed in section 5. Throughout the document, country cases are presented to demonstrate how assessment activities can be implemented in the classroom in different contexts.Publication Morocco Economic Update, Winter 2025(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-04-03)Despite the drought causing a modest deceleration of overall GDP growth to 3.2 percent, the Moroccan economy has exhibited some encouraging trends in 2024. Non-agricultural growth has accelerated to an estimated 3.8 percent, driven by a revitalized industrial sector and a rebound in gross capital formation. Inflation has dropped below 1 percent, allowing Bank al-Maghrib to begin easing its monetary policy. While rural labor markets remain depressed, the economy has added close to 162,000 jobs in urban areas. Morocco’s external position remains strong overall, with a moderate current account deficit largely financed by growing foreign direct investment inflows, underpinned by solid investor confidence indicators. Despite significant spending pressures, the debt-to-GDP ratio is slowly declining.Publication Europe and Central Asia Economic Update, Spring 2025: Accelerating Growth through Entrepreneurship, Technology Adoption, and Innovation(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-04-23)Business dynamism and economic growth in Europe and Central Asia have weakened since the late 2000s, with productivity growth driven largely by resource reallocation between firms and sectors rather than innovation. To move up the value chain, countries need to facilitate technology adoption, stronger domestic competition, and firm-level innovation to build a more dynamic private sector. Governments should move beyond broad support for small- and medium-sized enterprises and focus on enabling the most productive firms to expand and compete globally. Strengthening competition policies, reducing the presence of state-owned enterprises, and ensuring fair market access are crucial. Limited availability of long-term financing and risk capital hinders firm growth and innovation. Economic disruptions are a shock in the short term, but they provide an opportunity for implementing enterprise and structural reforms, all of which are essential for creating better-paying jobs and helping countries in the region to achieve high-income status.Publication Argentina Country Climate and Development Report(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-11)The Argentina Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) explores opportunities and identifies trade-offs for aligning Argentina’s growth and poverty reduction policies with its commitments on, and its ability to withstand, climate change. It assesses how the country can: reduce its vulnerability to climate shocks through targeted public and private investments and adequation of social protection. The report also shows how Argentina can seize the benefits of a global decarbonization path to sustain a more robust economic growth through further development of Argentina’s potential for renewable energy, energy efficiency actions, the lithium value chain, as well as climate-smart agriculture (and land use) options. Given Argentina’s context, this CCDR focuses on win-win policies and investments, which have large co-benefits or can contribute to raising the country’s growth while helping to adapt the economy, also considering how human capital actions can accompany a just transition.