NC State

Bruce D. McDonald, III

"Ideas have to be wedded to action; if there is no sex, no vitality in them, there is no action. Ideas cannot exist alone in the vacuum of the mind. Ideas are related to living."

-Henry Miller

Welcome!

Thank you for taking the time to visit this website and to learn a little about me! I try my best to keep my website as up to date as possible, but I also find myself working on any number of projects at once. As such, I fear I will likely get behind. If you have any questions, or if I may ever be of assistance, please feel free to reach out.

FEATURED RESEARCH

How States Preempt Local Laws

One of the most visible challenges city policymakers are facing today are states that preempt their lawmaking abilities. Our research defines preemption broadly, as the use of coercive methods to substitute state priorities for local policymaking.

How Governments Can Attract Companies During COVID-19

As companies labor to stay afloat amid the coronavirus pandemic, some businesses that feel hemmed in by local or statewide workplace safety mandates have threatened to relocate to more accommodating locations.

COVID-19 Is A Financial Crisis for Local Governments

The Covid-19 pandemic has created a global public health emergency as governments race to respond. In the United States, this response has been challenged by a federal government that has provided little cohesive guidance and often misleading information. Anecdotally, many local governments are expecting a 20-50 drop in sales and use tax revenue due to the virus of b

Do Tax Breaks Help or Hurt a State’s Finances?

The debate over tax incentives usually centers on whether they lead to job creation and other economic benefits. But governments must also pay attention to their own bottom lines. How do all the financial incentives that states offer actually influence fiscal health? New research seeks to answer that question.

Measuring the Fiscal Health of Municipalities

One of the difficulties faced in the effective and efficient management of public organizations is the understanding of when the organization is experiencing financial distress. Evidence, however, suggests that our current approaches to understanding fiscal health are not sufficient predictors of fiscal distress.

Sanctions Boost Foreign Military More Than They Hurt Economy

Evidence indicates that economic sanctions are not effective tools for achieving specific policy goals in foreign nations. New research led by NC State's School of Public and International Affairs argues that increased military spending caused by economic sanctions counterbalances the adverse impact of the sanctions.