A Study On Causes And Governance Of Local Government Land Financial Problems In China

Land Finance is unique historical phenomenon in the process of Chinese urbanization.With the land ownership or management rights to obtain revenues is the common practice around Chinese local governments, which has the periodic and institutional features. The current land fiscal model has a unique role and phase contribution in the economic and social development, but the model in the process of operation exits risks which cause social concern about its sustainability. Therefore, exploring the cause analysis and transformation ideas of the financial model has a certain necessity and reality in theory and practice. On the basis of the previous literature research, China’s land finance formation and other related issues are studied by the principal-agent framework and case analysis methods. Generally speaking, this paper will focus on answering the following questions. Re-interpretation and understanding of land finance concept. Combing the generation and development of China’s land finance, which is accompanied by China’s fiscal and taxation policy evolution course with the change from unified receipts and allocations by the state to dividing revenue and expenditure between the central and local governments, from the highly-centralized system to moderate decentralization. An interpretation model is established under the drive of fiscal decentralization and local government competition to explain the formation reasons of China’s land finance. By drawing on international experience, a set of basic governance ideas for the land financial problems have been put forward. In view of the actual situation of Dalian and Xiamen, it can make judgments on the future development trend of local land finance and put forward the corresponding management recommendations.The specific work done and research conclusions in this paper are as follows.First, The author puts forward that the land financial model in our country can be considered to originate from the reform of tax allocation in1994. Due to the current imperfect financial system and the information asymmetry between the central and local governments, the local governments regard private disposable income, resource control and political profit maximization as their ultimate goal, and the characterization is urban sprawl land size. This system of fiscal revenue and expenditure activity and interest distribution can gain more profit through the huge "price scissors" and is independent of the fiscal and taxation system, which is the special finance phenomenon in China in the transition period of our country.Second, the generation and development of China’s land finance is accompanied by China’s fiscal and taxation policy evolution course with the change from unified receipts and allocations by the state to dividing revenue and expenditure between the central and local governments, from the highly-centralized system to moderate decentralization. It can be said that this policy evolution is one of the root causes to the emergence, development and expansion of land finance.Third, the author explains the inner reasons for the formation of local governments land financial based on the principal-agent framework, that is to establish an interpretation model of the impact of fiscal decentralization and local competition. And the main institutional reasons and internal logic of land finance related issues are the unbalanced fiscal power and administrative authority of local governments caused by the current financial and taxation system and the imperfect central government incentive and constraint mechanisms.In addition, it is found that American and Japan have experienced the process from land sales mainly to the widespread property tax collection by reference to the general laws of their land system. And the excessive land privatization will also affect the development of the social economy. Thus, by summing up the general laws of the historical evolution in these countries, the concept that land ownership should serve the public interest is established, which can urge the land involved in China’s land finance to the rational development.What’s more, for the sake of combing and establishing the governance ideas of China’s land financial problems to guarantee the sustainable development of the local economy based on the above theoretical analysis and practical experience, it should establish the double attributes of land resources, adhere to the reform and opening-up strategy strictly, deepen the reform of the fiscal and taxation system, improve the transfer payment system, continue to improve the performance evaluation and the official promotion criteria, strengthen the supervision of local government land transfer and debt information disclosure, review the development of real estate industry and improve the regional economic growth mode, improve the existing land leasing income and the land system, conform to the requirements in the new urbanization.Last, through the analysis of Dalian and Xiamen to verify the effectiveness of the above theoretical analysis. Dalian and Xiamen inevitably expand the fiscal gap under the dual influence of fiscal decentralization and local government competition,which forms the pattern of land finance to rely on land revenue to compensate the fiscal gap. According to the existing problem of the two cities, the author thinks that the basic governance paths in Chapter5should be possible to achieve the coordinated development of land finance and the local economy. The comprehensive measures involves changing the growth mode, improving land management system, strengthening information disclosure of local government debt and setting the property tax.