Chilean mining municipalities collect a mineral tax to compensate for the negative externalities associated with resource extraction. Although this implies a positive marginal impact on local finance, there is not enough empirical evidence to support that this improves the quality of life in these communities. This article attempts to bridge this knowledge gap via a unique experimental framework, specifically, the Chilean tax system and a mining law that allows certain municipalities above an exogenous threshold to keep the extra income.

Literature on the resource curse argues that resource windfalls, such as those resulting from a commodity price boom, crowd out several determinants of long-term fiscal income (Papyrakis and Gerlagh, 2006). Although empirical literature tests this theory at an intercountry context, similar attention has not been paid to that of subnational governments. This different type of spatial scope would reveal how low-tier governments strategically behave in regard to resource windfalls and covering local costs.

In this paper, we estimate the Value of Statistical Life (VSL) for Chile, Colombia, and the United States using a hedonic wage model and a pseudo-panel approach. The VSL is a major component of costbenefit analysis of many policies including public health, transportation safety, and environmental regulation. Using pseudo-panels, also known as synthetic cohort data, to estimate the VSL is relevant for

The book discusses the foundations of economics development and institutions. The chapters touch on several issues such as  :  

1) Institutions,Clientalism and Inequality

2) Institutions and Growth 

3) Trade, Aid and Migration

4)Families,Gender and Culture 

5) Sectoral Approaches

EfD India contribtuion : Book Chapters by Rohini Somanathan (Part 1 chapter 4) and E. Somanathan (Part 5, Chapter 20)