George Break

GEORGE BREAK

Professor Emeritus of Economics, Deceased

George Break
Currivulum Vitae

Mailing Address:
University of California, Berkeley
Department of Economics
508-1 Evans Hall #3880
Berkeley, CA 94720-3880

Department Tel No. (510) 642-0822
Department Fax No. (510) 642-6615

Publications

Books and Monographs

  • Public Finance. New York: Ronald Press, March 1961 (with Earl Rolph).
  • The Economic Impact of Federal Loan Insurance, Washington, D.C.: National Planning Association, 1961.
  • Studies in Greek Taxation, (with Ralph Turvey), Athens: Center of Planning and Economic Research, 1964.
  • Federal Lending and Economic Stability, (Washington: Brookings Institution, 1967.)
  • Agenda for Local Tax Reform, Institute of Governmental Studies, U.C. Berkeley, (1970).
  • Co-authored with Joseph A. Pechman, Federal Tax Reform: the Impossible Dream? (Brookings Institution, 1975).
  • Metropolitan Financing and Growth Management Policies: Principles and Practice (University of Wisconsin Press, 1978). (Break as editor).
  • The Economics of Public Finance (with Alan Binder and others), (Washington: Brookings Institution, 1974).
  • Financing Government in a Federal System (Washington: Brookings Institution, 1980).
  • State and Local Finance: The Pressures of the 1980's (Break as editor). (University of Wisconsin Press, 1983.
  • The Jamaican Income Tax System: A Framework for Policy Formation, Jamaica Tax Structure Examination Project, Staff Paper N. 12 (October 1984).
  • State of California, Tax Reform Advisory Commission, co-authored with six other Commission members: Report, (February 11, 1985).
  • State of California, Tax Reform Advisory Commission, co-authored with six other Commission members: Final Report, (August 1985).
  • Corporate Income Taxation in Jamaica: A Framework for Policy Formation, Jamaica Tax Structure Examination Project, Staff Paper No. 21 (September 1985).
  • Private Sector Capital Investments and the Company Tax, Jamaica Tax Structure Examination Project, Staff Paper No. 28, co-authored with Daniel Holland and Charles E. McLure, Jr. (March 1986).

Contributions to Books

  • "The Effects of Taxation on Work Incentives," in Federal Tax Policy for Economic Growth and Stability. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 195, pp. 192-99.
  • "The Hidden Effects of Federal Credit Programs," in Federal Expenditure Policy for Economic Growth and Stability. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1957, pp. 423-32.
  • "How to Appraise Quantitatively the Effects of Government Economic Policy: Federal Loan Insurance and Guaranty Programs," in Proceedings of the Business and Economic Statistics Section. Washington: American Statistical Association, December, 1958, pp. 221-25.
  • "Desiderata for the Basic Course in Economics and Business Statistics: Introduction to the Quantitative Analysis of Problems in Economics and Business Administration," in Proceedings of the Business and Economic Statistics Section. Washington: American Statistical Association, December, 1958, pp. 329-30.
  • "Income Tax Rates and Incentives to Work and to Invest," in Tax Revision Compendium: Compendium of Papers on Broadening the Tax Base, Washington: Government Printing Office, Vol. III, 1959, pp. 2247-55.
  • "The Incidence of Consumption Taxes," in Proceedings of the 54th Annual Conference on Taxation, National Tax Association, 1961, pp. 625-32.
  • "Federal Loan Insurance for Housing," in Commission on Money and Credit, Federal Credit Agencies, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1963, pp. 1-65.
  • "The California Tax System in Prospect," in The University of California and State Support, (with Malcolm M. Davisson).
  • "The Effects of Taxation on Work Incentives," in Edmund S. Phelps, ed., Private Wants and Public Needs, New York: W.W. Norton, 1962, pp. 63-73.
  • "Allocation and Excess Burden Effects of Excise and Sales Taxes," in U.S. Congress, House Committee on Ways and Means, Excise Tax Compendium (Washington, June 1964), pp. 65-72.
  • "Income Tax Rates and Incentives to Work and to Invest," in Joseph Scherer and James A. Papke, ed., Public Finance and Fiscal Policy (N.Y., Houghton Mifflin, 1966), pp.537-47.
  • "An Economic Evaluation of the Proposed Federal Tax Credit," Proceedings of the Fifty-Ninth Annual Conference, 1966, pp. 395-409. (National Tax Association, 1967.)
  • "The Alternatives: Sales and Income Taxes," by Helen S. and George F. Break, in Eugene C. Lee and Willis D. Hawley, eds., The Challenge of California, (Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1970), pp. 188-193.
  • "Changing Roles of Different Levels of Government," in Julius Margolis, ed., The Analysis of Public Output (Columbia University Press, for the National Bureau of Economic Research, 1970), pp. 163-209.
  • "Subsidies as an Instrument for Achieving Public Economy Goals," in U.S. Congress, Joint Economic Committee, The Economics of Federal Subsidy Programs, Part I, (U.S. Government Printing Office, May 8, 1972).
  • "Economic aspects: How Real is the Problem? How Good is the Solution?", in Institute of Governmental Studies, University of California, Berkeley, Tax and Expenditure Limitation by Constitutional Amendment: Four Perspectives on the California Initiative, 1973.
  • "Spillovers" and "Optimizing Grants," reprinted from Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations in the United States, in Oliver Oldman and Ferdinand P. Schoettle, eds., State and Local Taxes and Finance: Text, Problems and Cases, University Casebook Series, (Mineola, N.Y., The Foundation Press, 1974).
  • "The Economic Evaluation of Investment in Airports," in George P. Howard, ed., Airport Economic Planning, (Cambridge: M.I.T. Press, 1974), pp. 517-41.
  • "Property Taxation: A Reappraisal of Burden, Incidence, and Equity and Their Policy Implications," in Arthur D. Lynn, Jr., ed. Property Taxation, Land Use and Public Policy, (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1976) pp. 23-37.
  • "Social Security as a Tax," in Michael J. Boskin (ed.) The Crisis in Social Security, (Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1977), pp. 107-123.
  • "A General Framework," in Donald H. Skadden (ed.) A New Tax Structure for the United States (Bobbs-Merrill, 1978).
  • "Charitable Contributions Under the Federal Individual Income Tax: Alternative Policy Options," in Research Papers sponsored by the Commission of Private Philanthropy and Public Needs, Vol. III (Department of the Treasury, 1977), pp. 1521-39.
  • "Corporate Tax Integration: Racial Revisionism or Common Sense? in Michael J. Boskin ed. Federal Tax Reform: Myths and Realities (Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1978), pp. 55-73.
  • "Intergovernmental Finance," in Municipal Finance Officers Association, State and Local Government Finance and Financial Management: A Compendium of Current Research, (Government Finance Research Center, 1978), pp. 95-104.
  • "Federal Tax Reform: The Carter Round," National Tax Association/Tax Institute of America, Proceedings of the Seventh Annual Conference, NTA/TIA 1978, pp. 10-13.
  • "After Proposition 13--Chaos or Reform?", University of Southern California, Law Center, The Respective Roles of State and Local Governments in Land Policy and Taxation, (February 1980), pp. 163-80.
  • "Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations," in Joseph A. Pechman, ed., Setting National Priorities: Agenda for the Eighties (Brookings Institution, 1980), pp. 247-81.
  • "Tax Principles in a Federal System," in Henry J. Aaron and Michael J. Boskin, eds., The Economics of Taxation (Brookings Institution, 1980), pp. 247-81.
  • "The Role of Government: Taxes, Transfers, and Spending," in Martin Feldstein, ed., The American Economy in Transition (University of Chicago Press, 1980), pp. 617-56.
  • "State and Local Finance in the 1980's," in Michael J. Boskin, ed., The Economy in the 1980's: A Program for Growth and Stability (Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1980), pp. 223-51.
  • "Fiscal Federalism in the 1980's," in ACIR, Intergovernmental Perspective (Summer 1980), pp. 10-14.
  • "Fiscal Federalism in the 1980's," in Michael J. Boskin, ed. The Economy in the 1980's: A Program for Growth and Stability (Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1980), pp. 223-51.
  • "Fiscal Federalism in the United States: The First 200 Years, Evolution and Outlook," in ACIR, The Future of Federalism in the 1980s, Report M-126 (July 1981), pp. 39-65.
  • "Inflation and the Federal Income Tax," in U.S. Congress, Joint Economic Committee, Special Study on Economic Change, Vol. 6. Federal Finance: The Pursuit of American Goals (December 23, 1980), pp. 400-43.
  • "The Economic Effects of the OASI Program," in Felicity Skidmore, ed. Social Security Financing (MIT Press, 1981), pp. 45-81.
  • "Government Spending Trends in the Postwar Period," in Michael J. Boskin and Aaron Wildavsky, eds., The Federal Budget: Economics and Politics (Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1982), pp. 39-62.
  • "Changes in Intergovernmental Fiscal Patterns," Public Budgeting and Finance, Vol. 2 (Winter 1982), pp. 42-57.
  • "The Value-Added Tax," in Joseph A. Pechman, ed., The Promise of Tax Reform (Prentice-Hall, 1985), pp. 128-57.
  • "Commentary," in John M. Quigley and Daniel L. Rubinfeld, eds., American Domestic Priorities: An Economic Appraisal, (University of California Press, 1985), pp. 75-79.
  • "Federal Income Tax Reform: Two Intergovernmental issues," National Tax Association-Tax Institute of America, Proceedings of the Seventy-Eighth Annual Conference (1985), pp. 3-6.
  • "The Case Against School Vouchers and Tuition Tax Credits," in Robert J. Thornton and J. Richard Aronson, eds., Forging New Relationships Among Business, Labor and Government (JAI Press, 1986), pp. 167-78.

Articles

  • "The Welfare Aspects of Excise Taxes," Journal of Political Economy, LVII, No.1, February, 1949, pp , 46-54 (with Earl R. Rolph).
  • "On the Deductibility of Capital Losses Under the Income Tax," The Journal of Finance, Vol. VII, May 1952, pp. 214-29.
  • "Income Taxes, Wage Rates, and the Incentive to Supply Labor Services," National Tax Journal, Vol. VI, No.4, December, 1953, pp. 333-352.
  • "Capital Maintenance and the Concept of Income," Journal of Political Economy, Vol. LXII, No.1, February, 1954, pp. 48-62.
  • "Excise Tax Burdens and Benefits," American Economic Review, Vol XLIV, No.4, September 1954, pp , 577-594.
  • "The Effects on Capital Expenditures of a Shift from Money to Real Income for Tax Purposes," National Tax Journal, Vol. IX, March 1956, pp. 14-26.
  • "Capital Maintenance and the Concept of Income; A Reply," Journal of Political Economy, Vol. LXIV, December 1956, pp. 54-55.
  • "The Effects of Taxation on Incentives," British Tax Review, June 1957, pp . 101-113.
  • "Income Taxation and Incentives to Work: A Survey of Recent Literature," Revista di Diritto Finanziario E. Scienza della Finanze, XIV, June, 1957, pp. 121-134.
  • "Income Taxes and Incentives to Work: An Empirical Study, II American Economic Review XLVI, September 1957, pp. 529-549.
  • "The Excise Tax Reduction," Business Scope, Vol. 9, No.7, (May 22, 1965), pp. 2-6.
  • "Fiscal Policy in a Fully Employed Economy," Journal of Finance, XXII, May 1967, pp. 247-260.
  • "The Treatment of Government Lending and Borrowing in the Federal Budget, II in President's Commission on Budget Concepts, Staff Papers and Other Materials Reviewed by the President's Commission (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1967), pp. 380-401.
  • "Integration of Corporate and Personal Income Taxes," Panel Discussion in Canadian Tax Foundation, Report of Proceedings of the Twentieth Tax Conference, (November 1967), pp. 12-15.
  • Parts of Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations in the United States, (Brookings, 1967), preprinted in: U.S. Congress, Joint Economic Committee, Revenue Sharing and its Alternatives: What Future for Fiscal Federalism?, Joint Committee Print (July 1967) (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1967). Volume I, pp. 140-145; Volume II, pp. 816-859, pp. 1069-1099, and 1162-1184; Volume III, pp. 1402-1422.
  • "Revenue Sharing; Priorities and Policy Instruments," Journal of Finance, XXIII:2 (May 1968), pp. 251-263.
  • "The Report of the Royal Commission on Taxation and Economic Policy in Canada," Canadian Tax Journal, XVI:3 (May-June, 1968), pp. 229-251.
  • "Integration of the Corporate and Personal Income Taxes," National Tax Journal, XXII (March, 1969), pp. 39-56.
  • "Integrating Corporate and Personal Income Taxes: The Carter Commission Proposals," in Law and Contemporary Problems, Vol. XXXIV, Autumn, 1969.
  • "Tax Reform in California - 1970 and Beyond," with Helen S. Break, Public Affairs Report, Bulletin of the Institute of Governmental STudies, U.C. Berkeley, Vol. II, No. 6 (December 1970) and Vol. 12, No. 1 (February, 1971)
  • "Revenue Sharing: Its Implications for Present and Future Intergovernmental Fiscal Systems: The Case For," National Tax Journal, Vol. XXIV, No.3, September 1971.
  • "Economic Effects of Proposed Treatment of Corporate-Source Income," in Report of the Proceedings of the Twenty-Third Tax Conference, convened by the Canadian Tax Foundation, Vancouver, B.C., Canada, November 15-17, 1971.
  • "Thrust of New Developments in Local Taxation as it Affects Business," in Business Taxes in State and Local Governments, Symposium conducted by the Tax Institute of America, November 5-6, 1970.
  • "Alternative Federal Revenue Sources: A View of Some Less Explored Possibilities," National Tax Journal, Vol. 25, (September 1972), pp. 443-450.
  • "Federal Tax Policy and the Private Saving Ratio," National Tax Journal, Vol. 26, September, 1973, pp. 409-414.
  • "Relationship Between the Corporation and Individual Income Taxes," (wLth Joseph A. Pechman), National Tax Journal, Vol. 28, (September 1975), pp. 341-52.
  • "After Proposition 13 -- The Deluge?" Challenge (January/February 1979) pp. 54-56.
  • "The Impact of Inflation on the Federal Tax System," Tax Notes, Vol. IX, No. 23, December 3, 1979.
  • "Adam Smith and the Property Tax: Some Neglected Advice," in Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Tax Policy Roundtable, Property Tax Papers Series, No. TPR-3 (1979).
  • "Avenues to Tax Reform: Perils and Possibilities," National Tax Journal, Vol. 37 (March 1984), pp. 1-8.
  • "Issues in Measuring the Level of Government Economic Activity," American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings (May 1982), pp. 288-95.
  • "Avenues to Tax Reform: Perils and Possibilities," National Tax Journal, Vol. 37 (March 1984), pp. 1-8.
  • "The Tax Expenditure Budget--The Need for a Fuller Accounting," National Tax Journal (September 1985), pp. 261-65.
  • "Tax Competition and Federal Tax Deductibility," National Tax Journal, (September 1986), pp. 349-52.

Reviews

  • Patterson, Robert T. "Federal Debt-Management Policies, 1865-1879." American Economic Review, December 1954, pp. 950-51.
  • Kaldor, Nicholas. "An Expenditure Tax," Economica, May 1956, pp. 176-78.
  • Halcrow, Harold G., Jacoby, Neil H., and Saulnier, R.J. "Federal Lending and Loan Insurance," Current Economic Comment, November, 1958.
  • Bator, Francis M. "The Question of Government Spending," American Economic Review, LI, March 1961, pp. 208-10.
  • Kahn, C. Harry. "Personal Deductions in the Federal Income Tax," Journal of Political Economy, LXX, August 1962, pp. 413-14.
  • Holland, Daniel M., "Dividends Under the Income Tax," Journal of Political Economy, LXXI, April 1963, pp. 193-95.
  • Mackintosh, A.S., The Development of Firms An Empirical Study with Special Reference to the Economic Effects of Taxation, in American Economic Review, LIV, March 1964, pp. 208-9.
  • Kryzyzaniak, Marian (ed.), Effects of Corporation Income Tax, in American Economic Review, LVII (June 1967), pp. 644-48.
  • "Public Finance a la Shoup: A Review Article," National Tax Journal, Vol. 25, June 1971, pp. 193-202.
  • Review of James T. Bennett and Manuel H. Johnson, The Political Economy of Federal Government Growth: 1959-1978, Journal of Economic Literature (March 1982), pp. 115-17.
  • "Review of Richard Goode, 'Government Finance in Developing Countries,'" Journal of Economic Literature (March 1985). pp. 124-5.

Notes, Comments, and Discussions

  • Summary of doctoral dissertation entitled "Some Theoretical Aspects of the Federal Taxation of Capital Gains and Losses," Journal of Political Economy, LXIII. February, 1955, pp. 75-76.
  • Discussion of Richard Goode's paper on "Income, Consumption and Property as Bases of Taxation," American Economic Review: Papers and Proceedings, LII, No.2, May 1962, pp. 349-52. Discussion of "A Survey of Investment Management and Working Behavior Among High-Income Individuals," by James Morgan, Robin Barlow and Harvey Brazer, American Economics Review, (Hay 1965), pp. 278-80.
  • Financing of Local Government, Research Report submitted to State of California Advisory Commission on Tax Reform, Sacramento (November 1968) 144 p.
  • "Comments on J. Hellerstein," in Charles E. McLure, Jr., ed., The State Corporation Income Tax: Issues in Worldwide Unitary Combination, (Hoover Institution Press, 1984), pp. 82-84.