On June 30, Zhang Pengju, assistant professor in the School of Public Affairs and Administration at Rutgers University–Newark, made an lecture entitled “American Taxes and Fees: An Perspective of Intergovernmental Financial Relationship” at the invitation of the School of Political Science and Public Administration of Shandong University. The lecture was presided over by Professor Ma Ben, Associate Dean of the School of Political Science and Public Administration of Shandong University. Teachers and students of the School and other related majors attended the lecture.

Professor Zhang Pengju used detailed data in the lecture to analyze the issues of taxes and fees in the United States from the perspective of intergovernmental fiscal relations. Professor Zhang Pengju believes that intergovernmental fiscal relations affect the matching of financial rights and powers of governments at all levels, and all kinds of taxes and fees are an important source of fiscal revenue. Professor Zhang Pengju’s data shows that fees have increased in the US since the 1970s. Since tax collection is mandatory, the increase of fees in states is voluntary. The emergence of this situation is determined by the tax system of the US itself. Then Professor Zhang Pengju introduced the situation of US taxes and fees through literature review. Firstly, he described how the US taxes and fees are measured. Secondly, he stated that the tax distribution game between the federal government and the state governments has led to an increase in the state fees. Their levying is an inevitable choice for states to increase public revenues under certain conditions of taxation. However, there are big differences between the states. Professor Zhang Pengju believes that the closer the states are to taxation ceiling, the more critical are the local government finances and the more they will use fees to increase public revenue. Professor Zhang Pengju conducts a robust test on these assumptions through a synthetic control model. Finally, through the analysis of the relationship between taxes and fees in the US, Professor Zhang Pengju believes that the policies of higher-level governments will have unexpected effects in the process of local execution. Therefore, it needs their supervisor government to adopt a more comprehensive and systematic plan to ensure the effective implementation of the policy.

Dr. Pengju Zhang is an assistant professor in the School of Public Affairs and Administration at Rutgers University–Newark where he is also the co-director of International Programs. Dr. Zhang is specialized in state and local public finance, local government studies, education finance and policy, and quantitative analysis. He has published articles in Public Finance Review, Economics of Governance, and other outlets.