Yilin Hou

• 2025 Spring
  • PAI 730 Problems in Public Administration - Government Revenue Analysis
  • PAI 734 Public Budgeting
  • ECN/PAI 635/735 State and Local Government Finance
• 2024 Fall
  • PAI 810 Advanced Seminar: Policy and Administration - Public Financial Management
• 2024 Spring
  • PAI 810 Advanced Seminar: Policy and Administration - Public Financial Management
  • PAI 996 Master's Project Course
  • PAI 735 State and Local Government Finance
• 2023 Fall
  • PAI 810 Advanced Seminar: Public Budgeting Seminar
• 2023 Spring
  • PAI 996 Master's Project Course
  • ECN/PAI 635/735 State and Local Government Finance

Yilin Hou is a professor of public administration and international affairs, a Tenth Decade Faculty Scholar, and a senior research associate in the Center for Policy Research. Hou’s field of expertise is public finance. His research interests are fiscal policy, public budgeting and intergovernmental fiscal relations as related to the core of development and governance.

Much of his research focuses on the smooth operation of government finance across the boom-bust cycles of the economy. He is particularly interested in researching rule-based, time-consistent fiscal policies that will contribute to how the government sector can well weather the vicissitudes of economic fluctuations and other aspects of the society in order to provide smooth and stable public services and goods. 

Hou’s research has been funded by the University of Georgia Foundation (2006-2008), the Center for Industrial Development and Environmental Governance at Tsinghua University, Beijing (2007-2010, funding from the Toyota Corporation), the Stanley W. Shelton Professor Fund at the University of Georgia (2009-2013), the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy in Cambridge, Massachusetts (2012-2013, 2016-2017), the China Center for Fiscal Development (2013-2018, at the Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing), and state/local government contracts.

Hou is the editor of the "Development and Governance" book series and the "Studies in Public Budgeting (and Fiscal Policy)" book series, both by the Springer International. He also sits on the editorial board of several major academic journals in his field.

Yilin received a Ph.D. from Syracuse University in 2002.

"Advance Taxation of Land Use Right to Finance Urban Infrastructure: Success and Consequences in China 1998-2015", Sponsored by Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

"Comprehensive Study of Financial Uncertainty, Fiscal Sustainability, and Governance Capacity", Sponsored by County of San Diego.

• Books
  • Hou, Y., Zhang, P., Ren, Q. and Ma, H., Development, Governance, and Real Property Tax in China. Palgrave MacMillan, 2019.
  • Hou, Y., Ren, Q. and Ma, H., Research in Scheme Design of China’s Local Property Tax (in Chinese 《中国房地产税税制要素设计研究》). Economic Science Press, 2016.
  • Local Government Budget Stabilization: Explorations and Evidence. Hou, Y. (ed.) Springer, 2015.
  • Hou, Y., Ren, Q. and Zhang, P., The Property Tax in China: History, Pilots, and Prospects. Springer, 2014.
  • Hou, Y., State Government Budget Stabilization: Policy, Tools and Impacts. Springer, 2013.
• Journal Articles
  • Hou, Y., Joyce, P., Thurmaier, K. and Willoughby, K., "Training Future Professors in Public Budgeting, Finance, and Financial Management: The Inter-University Consortium for PhD Courses." Journal of Public Affairs Education, 2024.
  • Hou, Y., Ding, L., Schwegman, D. and Barca, A., "Assessment Frequency and Equity of the Real Property Tax: Latest Evidence from Philadelphia." Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 2024.
  • Shon, J., Hou, Y., "Behavioural patterns of leaders versus followers in setting local sales tax policy." Fiscal Studies (Journal of Applied Public Economics), 2024.
  • Miao, Q., Guo, W., Hou, Y. and Davlasheridze, M., "Fiscal implications of disasters and managed retreat thereafter: Evidence from Hurricane Sandy." In Part of my pending NSF grant proposed project (I am PI, proposal submitted August 2024). Natural Disaster Review , 2024.
  • Kim, Y., Hou, Y., "Property Assessment – Cycle Length and Equity." Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, 2024.
  • Miao, Q., Abrigo, D., Hou, Y. and Liao, P., "Extreme Weather Events and Local Fiscal Responses: Evidence from U.S. Counties." Journal of Economics of Disasters and Climate Change, 2023.
  • Kim, Y., Hou, Y. and Yinger, J., "Returns to Scale in Property Value Assessment: Evidence from New York State’s Small Localities Coordination Program." National Tax Journal, 2023.
  • Zhang, P., Hou, Y., Ren, Q. and Ma, H., "Property Taxation and Fiscal Governance: Clarifying Eight Puzzles." International Economic Review , 2022.
  • Zhang, P., Hou, Y. and Li, B., "Impacts of Property Tax Levy on Housing Price and Rent: Theoretical Models and Simulation with Insights on the Timing of China Adopting the Property Tax." China Finance and Economic Review, 2021.
  • An, Z., Hou, Y., "Debt Authority and Intentional Overstatement of Budgetary Deficit: Evidence from Chinese Provinces." International Tax & Public Finance, 2020.
  • Zhang, P., Hou, Y. and Li, B., "Impacts of Property Tax Levy on Housing Price and Rent: Theoretical Models and Simulation." Journal of Public Finance and Trade, 2020.
  • Zhang, P., Hou, Y., "The Impact of Tax and Expenditure Limitations on User Fees and Charges in Local Government Finance: Evidence from New England." Publius: The Journal of Federalism, 2020.
  • Shao, L., Ren, Q. and Hou, Y., "Capitalization of Education Equalization Measures in Beijing: Implications for Rent-Purchase Equal Rights and Adopting the Real Property Tax." Journal of World Economy, 2020.
• Book Chapters
  • Hou, Y., "The Real Property Tax in Local Public Finance." In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics. Oxford University Press, 2020.
  • Hou, Y., "Designing and Administering Revenue Systems." In Handbook of Public Administration 3rd edition. Perry, J., Christensen, R. (eds.) Jossey-Bass Publications, 2015.
  • Hou, Y., "Re-Inventing Public Administration for the 21st Century: Towards a More Global and Generic Paradigm." In The Future of Public Administration, Public Management and Public Service around the World: The Minnowbrook Perspective. O'Leary, R., Slyke, D. V. and Kim, S. (eds.) Georgetown University Press, 2010.
• Monographs
  • Hou, Y., Lofton, M. and Thomas, J., Toward Long-Term Fiscal Sustainability: Identifying Successes and Potential Financial Uncertainties – Report of the San Diego Project. Center for Policy Research, Syracuse University, 2016.
  • Hou, Y., "Measuring the capacity and performance of financial management in state and local governments." In Capacity and Performance Measurement – Final Report of the Government Performance Project. Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University, 2002.

International Symposium: Public Administration in the Post-Pandemic Era: Challenges, Opportunities, and Directions, University of Macau, "Fiscal Governance in the Context of Disasters" (December 6, 2024 - December 7, 2024)

Shanghai Conference on Public Budgeting Research, Shanghai University and Fudan University, "On Uncertainty and Operating Rules in Public Budgeting Research" (June 28, 2024)

Yonsei University, South Korea, "The Study and Teaching of Public Budgeting, Public Finance and Financial Management at the Doctoral Level " (January 15, 2024)

International Lecture Series in Public Finance, Georgia State University & Central University of Finance and Economics, "The Past, Present, and Future of Property Taxation" (November 3, 2023)

Hou, Y., Mohr, Z., Annual Research Conference, Association for Budgeting and Financial Management, "Cracking the Information Intensity Puzzle of Budget Tables: Experiments as Confirmation of Hypotheses " (October 26, 2023 - October 28, 2023)

Annual Research Conference , Association for Budgeting and Financial Management (ABFM), "Handling Fiscal Uncertainty through Institution Building and Mechanism Design" (October 27, 2023)

Memorial , Association for Budgeting and Financial Management, "A Tribute to Dr. Thomas Lauth" (October 26, 2023)

D.C. Research Conference , American Real Estate & Urban Economics Association, "RENT-TAX SUBSTITUTION & FISCAL INCENTIVES IN URBAN LAND ALLOCATION" (June 1, 2023 - June 2, 2023)

Urban Economics and Public Finance conference, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, "The Impact of Property Reassessment on Tax Equity and Household Expectations " (May 18, 2023 - May 19, 2023)

Qingzheng Dong Best Paper in Public Finance and Taxation, Qingzheng Dong Education Fund (December, 2024)

Aaron Wildavsky Lifetime Achievement Award, Association for Budgeting & Financial Management (October, 2023)

Pushang Economic Policy Research Award, Pushan Foundation, Shanghai, China (2018)

James E. Webb Award 2004 for the most outstanding paper, American Society for Public Administration (2004)

Outstanding Dissertation Award, Syracuse University (June, 2002)