In what ways do campaign donations influence a newly elected official’s local economy? Do more pennies pushed toward a winning politician’s party result in favorable public policy outcomes for the donor? Common sense says yes, but Brent Lutes, economics graduate student, says researchers have yet to establish a statistical link. As one of four recipients of the Center for Economics & Public Policy’s inaugural research fellowships, he’s working on a new model which may provide such a link, and he’s using Los Angeles County as his first case study.

"The effect of local politics on economics and urban development is evident, yet we know almost nothing about how local policy is influenced,” Lutes says. “Most studies tend to focus on higher level politics – like the state and national level – while neglecting the local which, arguably, has the most influence on our day-to-day lives.” He’s hoping to fill that gap.

He is working on an economic model that would link building permit issuances with value and origin of reported campaign donations to city council members, mayors and county supervisors. He’s also planning to use GIS software to map whether or not bidding wars may happen for neighboring politicians.

“The support we receive to sponsor CEPP fellows enables our recipients to carry out research with potentially significant public policy implications, and, perhaps more importantly, encourages them to apply the cutting-edge research skills they learn in their undergraduate and grad programs to important public policy questions,” says David Neumark, economics Chancellor’s Professor and Center for Economics & Public Policy Director.

The fellowship recipients include four graduate students who are studying policy relevant topics like tax incentives for the film industry and responses to epidemics:

• “Can Motion Picture Production Incentives Create a Local Film Industry?” Patrick Button, Graduate Student, Department of Economics
• “Revenue-Neutral Parking Auctions,” Michael Caldara, Graduate Student, Department of Economics
• “Coordinating Epidemic Response: Is Demand for Prevention Products Prevalence Elastic?”Anne Carpenter, Graduate Student, Department of Economics
• “Campaign Finance, Policy Influence and Urban Development: The Case of Los Angeles,” Brent Lutes, Graduate Student, Department of Economics

Undergraduate Jonathan Woo is also receiving support from the center to study the efficiency of traffic lights.

Their research funding is made possible by gifts from Steve Borowski, alumnus, and his wife Linda, and Vivek Pai, also an alumnus, and his wife Rashmi.