This book commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of Charles Tiebout’s enormously influential article, “A Pure Theory of Local Expenditures,” and honors the contributions of Wallace Oates as expositor and popularizer of the Tiebout model. While Tiebout holds the patent on the hypothesis, Oates brought the product to market. Based on a conference cosponsored by the Lincoln Institute and the Rockefeller Center for Public Policy and Social Studies at Dartmouth College in June 2005, this collection of scholarly articles evaluates the Tiebout model’s influence on the disciplines of economics, law, and political science, and assesses future directions for public policy. It addresses such topics as school choice, fiscal federalism, and land use regulation.

“The model and its extensions in this book and elsewhere are particularly applicable to U.S. metropolitan areas because they are often comprised of many local governments from which footloose households can choose their desired place to live. Nevertheless, the book will be of interest to those who study local government in other countries.”