Fiscal Capacity and Metropolitan Public Finances in Mexico

This article examines the factors that determine the tax capacity of the Federal District and 25 municipalities in three metropolitan zones in Mexico. The author presents models that have been formulated in international frontier literature to determine the potential for obtaining tax resources. His main contribution involves implementing a robust econometric model, the Stochastic Frontier Model to measure the capacity for obtaining resources in three metropolitan zones in Mexico and determine the degree of fiscal effort made by 25 municipalities and the Federal District during the period from 1992 to 2007.