“The Public Administration and State Capacity”  [25.06.25]

Image: Felix Eddy

In June, an international workshop took place at the University of Hohenheim, hosted by economics professors Nadja Dwenger (University of Hohenheim) and Anna Gumpert (University of Tübingen). Under the title "The Public Administration and State Capacity," the event brought together researchers to explore the role of public administration in shaping and implementing economic policy. Public administration plays a crucial part in delivering, managing, and evaluating economic measures. Yet, as Keen and Slemrod (2016, p. 1) have noted, “surprisingly little is known about the under-studied issue of the proper extent and design of administrative interventions.”

The aim of the workshop was therefore to better understand public administration both as an organization and to identify and analyze its actual economic impacts. Scholars from the fields of public economics, political economy, and organizational economics are all engaged in these issues—though often in isolation from one another. Achieving a more comprehensive understanding requires closer collaboration and stronger networks across these research areas.

Image: University of Hohenheim/Philip Mielcarek

The workshop program featured high-level presentations and lively discussions. Breaks were also actively used for in-depth academic exchange. In particular, the two keynote lectures by Frederico Finan (University of California, Berkeley) and Jonas Hjort (University College London) provided valuable insights and impulses for the scholarly debate.

The workshop concluded the research project “Building Fiscal Capacity (FISCAP)”, funded by the German Research Foundation. Nadja Dwenger and Anna Gumpert presented their findings on knowledge transfer within the East German tax administration after German reunification. The overall research project was a joint endeavor with political and administrative scientist Julia Fleischer (University of Potsdam).

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