Punishing productivity

The author of this study has worked independently and the opinions expressed are therefore their own, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the board of the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. [...] Any errors or omissions and the accuracy and completeness of this paper remain the responsibility of the author. [...] SERIES Australia’s equalization system Since federation, the Australian federal This reliance on transfers emphasizes government has been the predominant the tight hold the Commonwealth has collector of tax revenue with some on the purse strings of the states and revenue then redistributed to the the importance of getting the transfer states. [...] The complexity reflects the CGC’s reflect best practices in service delivery attempts to take detailed account of the and revenue collection.14 myriad factors affecting states’ expendi- According to the state of Victoria, states tures and revenue. [...] Therefore, in Australia, that receive above average per capita the states’ expenditure and revenue grants should be accountable to the capacities are taken into account, and broader Australian community for the use despite many years of close examination of the funds.