Spring Public Finance Conference: Bridging Theory and Practice

May 1-2, 2025 | 桃汁影院

Join us for the Spring Public Finance Conference on May 1-2, 2025, at 桃汁影院 University, where thought leaders and innovators will converge to explore the dynamic intersection of theory and practice in public finance. 


Agenda

Thursday, May 1, 2025 | Rhatigan Student Center (3rd Floor)

Luncheon & Round Table Discussion | 12:00pm - 1:15pm

Joint Lunch with KS GFOA, Spring Symposium (RSC Beggs Ball Room)

Round Table Discussion - "Navigating Federal Uncertainty: Implications for State and Local Governments"

Moderator: Lunda Asmani, GFOA President Elect, Chief Financial Officer, Norwark Public Schools, CPFO

Panelists:

  • Jarron Brady, Policy Analyst, GFOA Federal Liaison Center
  • William Glasgall, Public Finance Advisor, Volcker Alliance
  • Elizabeth Goltry, Budget Officer, City of Wichita
  • Gary Hamer, Director of Strategic Planning, Partner Tulsa
  • Scott Pattison, Director of Tax Research and Policy, Federation of Tax Administrators
  • Lindsay Poe Rousseau, Chief Financial Officer, Sedgwick County
Local Government Revenue | 1:30pm - 2:30 pm

"Portfolio Theory and Municipal Revenue: Service Structures and Risk Asymmetry"

Presenters:

  • Nathan Grasse, Carleton University
  • Wesley Janson, Internal Revenue Service
  • Justin Marlowe, University of Chicago
  • Elizabeth Searing, University of Texas-Dallas

"Local Income Taxes and Intrastate Migration: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from Indiana and Maryland"

Presenter: Andrey Yushkov, Tax Foundation

Discussant: Ken Kriz University of Illinois, Springfield

Experiments in Public Finance | 2:45pm - 3:45pm

"How Popular Financial Reporting Affects the Recipients鈥 Information Processing and Perceptions: Lab Experimental Evidence"

Presenters:

  • Jinhai Yu, University of Connecticut
  •  Zhiwei Zhang, Kansas State University
  •  Josie Schafer, University of Nebraska Omaha
  •  Nicolai Petrovsky, City University of Hong Kong
  •  Shannon Cummins, University of Nebraska Omaha

"How Much Is Too Much? Examining Whether the Size of the Deficit or Surplus Changes Budget Simulation Outcomes and Perceptions of the Organization"

Presenters:

  • Zachary Mohr, University of Kansas
  • Whitney Afonso, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill

Discussant: Justin Ross, Indiana University

Social Equity in Public Budgeting and Financial Management | 4:00pm - 5:00pm

"Applying Social Equity to Public Financial Management: Status and Opportunities"

Presenters:

  • John Bartle, University of Nebraska, Omaha
  • Phil Joyce, University of Maryland
  • Marilyn Rubin, Rutgers University -- Newark

"Advancing Social Equity in Public Budgeting and Tax Policy: Strategies for Inclusive Governance and Sustainable Development"

Presenter: Abigail Animah Amankwah, University of New Mexico

Discussant: Sharon Kioko, University of Washinton

Welcome Reception | 5:30pm - 7:30pm

 Reception in the RSC Beggs Ballroom

Friday, May 2, 2025 | NetApp Innovation Campus - Torn Label Conference Room

Welcome | 8:30am 

Welcome remarks by Dr. Stephanie Newbold, Director of the Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs

AI and Machine Learning in Public Financial Management | 8:45am - 10:15am

"TaMPERing Generative AI: a Framework for the Systematic and Responsible Use of Large Language Models"

Presenter: Michael Overton, University of Idaho


"The Impact and Integration of Artificial Intelligence in Public Financial Management: A Case Study of the State of New Mexico"

Presenter: Ferdinand Forkuo Kwarteng, University of New Mexico


"Can Machine Learning Algorithms Better Help Predict Fiscal Stress in Local Governments?"

Presenters:

  • Can Chen, Georgia State University
  • Yilun Zha, Georgia Institute of Technology
  • Chaowang Ren, Georgia State University
  • Yuxiang Zhao, Georgia Institute of Technology

Discussant: Christine Martell, University of Colorado, Denver

Development and Fiscal Health | 10:30am - 12:00pm

"Benefit or Burden: Evaluating $1 Trillion in State Tax Expenditures"

Presenters:

  • Matt Fabian, Municipal Market Analytics
  • Lisa Washburn, Municipal Market Analytics

"Evaluating the EITC's Role in Urban Fiscal Health Amidst Varied Trajectories of Decline"

Presenters:

  • Sarah E. Larson, Miami University of Ohio
  • Lindsey Interlante, Five College of Ohio

"Locally Funded Economic Development Corporations (EDC), Economic Growth and the Great Recession: Application of Generalized Additive Models, Synthetic Control Method, and Synthetic Difference in Differences"

Presenters:

  • Robert Lee Bland, University of North Texas
  • Edmund Poku Adu, University of North Texas

Discussant: Bart Hildreth

Lunch and NetApp Tour | 12:00pm - 1:30pm

Join us for lunch and a fascinating tour of the NetApp Campus at 桃汁影院.

Fiscal Federalism and Intergovernmental Fiscal Relationship | 1:30pm - 3:15pm

"State Revenue Trend"

Presenter: *Scott Pattison, Federation of Tax Administrators


"Resilient State and Local Finance: Effective Fiscal Federalism"

Presenters:

  • William Glasgall, Volcker Alliance
  • Noah-Winn-Ritzenberg, Volcker Alliance

"State Management of Federal Funds: Challenges and Opportunities"

Presenters:

  • Maureen Hilton, Pew Charitable Trusts
  • Rebecca Thiess, Pew Charitable Trusts
  • Kate Walberg, Pew Charitable Trusts

"The Flypaper Effect: A Meta-Analysis"

Presenters:

  •  Luke Spreen, University of Maryland
  • Ed Gerrish, University of South Dakota
  • Hao Sun, Gallaudet University
  • Luis Navarro, Indiana University

Discussant: Yilin Hou, Syracuse University

Capital, Labor, and Infrastructure: Policy Challenges and Solutions | 3:30pm - 5:00pm

"Impact of Fragmented Funding for Capital Improvements: Evidence from Washington"

Presenters:

  • Pengju Zhang, Rutgers University - Newark
  • Sharon N. Kioko, University of Washington

"Shocks to Fiscal Equilibrium? The Impact of Hurricane Shocks to Local Government Finance"

Presenters:

  • Hyewon Kang, Florida International University
  • Yu Shi, University of North Texas

"Labor-Capital Substitution in Nursing Homes: Policy Implications of Rising Labor Costs"

Presenter: Ikeya Lady, Indiana University

Discussant: John Bartle, University Nebraska Omaha