The Impact of General Revenue Sharing on Spending in Fifty Cities

Abstract

This study examines the net effect of General Revenue Sharing (GRS) funds on city expenditures in the areas of public safety/public works and social welfare. Using a linear trend analysis, spending patterns over a 15-year period (1963-1977) are examined for such city services as police, fire, sewage, health, and housing. Political characteristics of the cities are identified to explain variations in the use of revenue sharing for social welfare functions. Short-or long-term spending increases after the introduction of revenue sharing appear in the spending patterns of a little less than one-fifth of the cities studied; in contrast to previous findings, pulbic safety spending does not seem to benefit disproportionately from the GRS program. The prevalence of long-term declines in spending patterns across service areas, despite the availability of GRS funds, confirms observations made in the urban literature.