Returning British Columbia to Prosperity

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Notes

1 Statistically, the two series had a correlation value of 0.2216, indicating a weak but positive correlation.

2 Consolidated provincial/local spending is referred to as consolidated provincial.

3 The September 1998 Fraser Forum includes a discussion of competitive bidding at the local level as implemented by former Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith.

4 For information on GDP growth, see the Economic Performance section, specifically Economic Figures 1, 2, and 3.

5 For an excellent discussion of top marginal tax rates in both the US and Canada, see Kesselman, 2000.

6 It is important to note that the seminal Carter Commission on Taxation (1966) concluded, in agreement with most economists, that businesses do not in and of themselves pay taxes. Rather, the customers, shareholders, and employees of business ultimately pay the price of business taxes in the form of higher prices, reduced service and/or quality, lower dividends and/or appreciation of equity, and lower remuneration. Business taxes should only be employed when they meet the objectives of traditional tax policy: efficiency, equity (fairness), and simplicity.

7 This measure includes regulations that contain rules not intended to change economic behaviour and excludes statutes containing rules designed to alter economic behaviour.

8 As discussed earlier, the cost of regulation calculations only include compliance costs and not calculations of the total deadweight loss associated with regulation.

9 The second major public voucher program in Cleveland, Ohio, provides yet another example of the powerful influence public vouchers can have on students, teachers, and government. For information on the Cleveland voucher program please see: Jay P. Greene, William G. Howell, and Paul E. Peterson, An Evaluation of the Cleveland Scholarship Program (1997) and Lessons from the Cleveland Scholarship Program (1997), both published by Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. See also Claudia Hepburn (1999), The Case For School Choice: Models from the United States, New Zealand, Denmark, and Sweden. Critical Issues Bulletin. Vancouver, BC: Fraser Institute. Digital document available on the Internet at www.fraserinstitute.ca.

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