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LOCAL PUBLIC SERVICES COSTS AND THE GEOGRAPHY OF DEVELOPMENT: EVIDENCE FROM FLORIDA COUNTIES
Author(s) -
Ihlanfeldt Keith,
Willardsen Kevin
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of regional science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.171
H-Index - 79
eISSN - 1467-9787
pISSN - 0022-4146
DOI - 10.1111/jors.12333
Subject(s) - jurisdiction , per capita , distribution (mathematics) , geography , gini coefficient , regional science , economic geography , panel data , inequality , economic growth , economics , econometrics , demography , political science , economic inequality , sociology , population , mathematics , mathematical analysis , law
ABTRACT Theory suggests that the spatial distribution of development within a local jurisdiction affects the costs of providing local public services. We use GINI coefficients to characterize these distributions at the county level and estimate the effects on real per capita expenditures from reductions in the spatial concentration of all buildings and nine alternative types of development. We also estimate the effect on expenditures from expansions in the developed area of a county. The results obtained from a panel of Florida counties confirm our theory and suggest that the geography of development within a county affects public services costs.