Issue 4, 2012

The paper analyses the structure of marginal tax rates. It examines the “brackets” of personal income tax, the dynamics and scope of non-taxable threshold (the so called zero tax bracket) and the last tax bracket which is (usually) associated with the highest (maximum) tax rate. The evolution of marginal tax rates at five selected levels of labor earnings defined as a proportion to the average wage in the country is traced against this background. The study also analyzes the behavior of average tax rates at the five selected levels of earnings for the period 1990 – 2008. Certain conclusions are made about the impact of respective changes (in marginal and average tax rates) on labor supply in the economy. Finally the paper examines the fluctuations in local progressivity of the income tax through time.

JEL: H23

This paper incorporates achievements of the New Institutional Economics and suggests a framework for assessing efficiency of farms and agrarian organizations. The new approach includes: study of farm and agrarian organizations as governing rather than production structure; assessment of comparative efficiency of alternative market, contract, internal, and hybrid modes of governance; analysis of level of transaction costs and their institutional, behavioral, dimensional, technological and natural factors; determination of criteria of farm efficiency and its effective boundaries; specification of economic role of government and needs for public interventions in agrarian sector; assessment of comparative efficiency of alternative forms of public involvement in agrarian sector.

JEL: Q01, Q12, Q13, Q15, Q18

The growing software expenses worldwide require methodological tools to estimate and compare the benefits and the efficiency of selecting, purchasing and using computer software. Therefore the specific features of measuring the software performance have been revealed. An expert method of quantitative estimate of software performance is developed. The stages of implementing the method, requirements to the experts and the mathematical way of its implementation are defined.

JEL: C8; C0

The article deals with the degree of development of the characteristic features of the activities and strategies of Bulgarian companies, influencing their competitiveness. The validity and the results of other studies have been investigated and affirmed. Two independent inquiries have demonstrated, that the most problematic aspects of the companies are in the auxiliary activities and not in their basic activities along the value chain.

JEL: D04; L10; M10