Federalism and Tax Reform

Abstract

The form and potential contributions of cooperative federalism and the additional skills and tasks required of the public service to turn well-known and developed tax reforms into actual reforms are evaluated. Cooperative federalism seems necessary for reforms involving state taxes and changes in the mix of taxes. Additional public sector skills and involvement in developing details of tax reform packages and their implementation, and then monitoring the outcomes, are important to raise community understanding of, and confidence in, taxation reform.