Public Finance | Development Economics
Curriculum Vitae
The PDF version of my CV can be found here.
Education
Cornell University Ithaca, NY
Ph.D. Candidate, Applied Economics & Management May 2021 (expected)
Fields: Public Finance, Development Economics
University of Minnesota – Twin Cities (Fulbright Scholar) Minneapolis, MN
Master of Public Policy (MPP) May 2014
Concentration: Applied Microeconometrics
Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) Lahore, Pakistan
Bachelor of Science (Honors with Merit) May 2010
Concentration: Economics
Working Papers
Ali Abbas. “Statutory Versus Effective Kinks: Using the Alternative Minimum Tax to Estimate the Elasticity of
Taxable Income for High Earners” (Job Market Paper)
Ali Abbas and Ali Cheema. “An Alternative Approach to Property Valuation and Taxation in Developing Countries”
Ali Abbas. “Multidimensional Measurement of Sectoral Performance: Evidence from Public Schools in Pakistan”
Research in Progress
Ali Abbas, David Albouy, and Michael Lovenheim. “Tax Reforms and Voting Behavior in the United States”
Ali Abbas. “The Impact of Inequality on Federal-State Transfers: The Case of the Federal Medicaid Assistance
Percentage”
Ali Abbas, Michael Callen, Ali Cheema Adnan Q. Khan, and Shandana Khan-Mohmand. “Trust, Taxation and Local
Governments”
Publications (Non-Peer Reviewed)
Ali Abbas and Ali Cheema (2020). “Reforming the Property Tax System in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa”
Media Coverage: Dawn.com, Business Recorder
Ali Abbas, Adnan Khan, Asim Khwaja and Monica Singhal. (2017). “Pilot Study on the Effect of Political Influence on
Tax Payment Compliance”, International Growth Centre
Ali Abbas, Mariam Adil and Salman Asim. (2015). “Community Engagement Mechanisms: Field Experiment in
Pakistan”, World Bank
Ali Abbas. (2014). “Rust Dust: Mounting Debt and Eroding Capital in the American Metropolis” (MPP thesis)
Research & Professional Experience
Government of Punjab, Pakistan – Resource Mobilization Committee (RMC) (May 2019 - Present)
Consulting Economist
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Assisting the RMC to conceptualize alternative property tax regimes and simulate their revenue and distributional impacts in the 110-million strong Punjab province. The RMC comprises the provincial Finance Minister, and secretaries of the Excise & Taxation, Local Government, and Finance departments
Cornell University – Dyson School of Applied Economics (May 2019 - August 2019)
Research Assistant
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Assisted Daniela Scur (Dyson School) and Katarzyna Bilicka (University of Utah) to analyze the impact of management structures on global corporate tax avoidance
Center for Economic Research in Pakistan (CERP) (June 2014 - July 2016)
Research Associate
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Assisted Asim I. Khwaja (Harvard University), Benjamin Olken (MIT) and Adnan Q. Khan (LSE) on two randomized controlled trials:
▪ “Rebuilding the Social Compact: Urban Service Delivery and Property Taxes in Pakistan”
The World Bank (HQ) (May 2014 - June 2016)
Short-Term Consultant
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Conducted econometric analysis for an education-sector impact evaluation that targeted 500+ schools in 230 villages in Sindh province, to enhance the capacity and participation of communities in school administration
The Brookings Institution – Metropolitan Policy Institute (May 2013 - August 2013)
Summer Intern
Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) Pakistan (August 2011 - June 2012)
Associate Coordinator (Project Design and Research)
Pakistan Policy Group (May 2010 - July 2011)
Research Fellow
Conferences
2021 Evidence-Based Economics (EBE) Munich Summer Meeting: Paper Presentation (scheduled)
2020 National Tax Association (NTA) 113th Annual Conference (Virtual): Paper presentation
2020 76th Annual Congress of the International Institute of Public Finance (IIPF): Paper Presentation
2019 National Tax Association (NTA) 112th Annual Conference (Tampa, Florida): Paper presentation
2019 Pakistan Development Forum (Harvard University): Organizing team member
2019 International Growth Center (IGC) “Cities that Work” Lahore Workshop: Invited Speaker
2018 National Tax Association (NTA) 111th Annual Conference (New Orleans, Louisiana): Discussant
Teaching
Cornell University – Department of Economics
ECON 1120: Introductory Macroeconomics (Head Graduate Teaching Assistant) Spring 2020
ECON 1110: Introductory Microeconomics (Head Graduate Teaching Assistant) Spring 2019
ILRLE 2400: Economics of Wages and Employment (Graduate Teaching Assistant) Fall 2019
Cornell University – Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics & Management
AEM 1300: Introduction to Macroeconomic Theory and Policy (Graduate Teaching Assistant) Summer 2020
AEM 4110: Introduction to Econometrics (Graduate Teaching Assistant) Fall 2018
(Conducted weekly lab lectures • Evaluation: 4.91/5.0)
AEM 2400: Marketing Summer 2018
AEM 2601: Managerial Economics II Spring 2018
AEM 6120: Applied Econometrics (Graduate Teaching Assistant) Fall 2017
(Conducted weekly theory lectures • Evaluation: 4.69/5.0)
AEM 7010-11: Applied Microeconomics I (Graduate Teaching Assistant) Fall 2017
(PhD Applied Economics core class)
University of Minnesota (Twin Cities) – Humphrey School of Public Affairs
PA 5011: Management of Organizations (Teaching Assistant) Fall 2013
Grants, Honors and Awards
Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award (“Golden Apple Award”), Cornell University 2019
Mario Einaudi International Research Travel Grants ($3,000), Cornell University 2018-2019
CARE-Cornell Summer Research Fellowship, Cornell University 2017
Graduate Fellowship, Dyson School, Cornell University 2016-2017
Nominated for Best Teaching Assistant Award, University of Minnesota 2014
Fulbright Scholarship for Graduate Study, Department of State, United States 2012-2014
Service
Member, Diversity in Cornell Economics (DICE), Cornell University 2019-2020
Treasurer, Graduate Student Association, Dyson School, Cornell University 2017-2019
Seminar Committee Member, Graduate Student Association, Dyson School, Cornell University 2017-2018
Vice President, Public Affairs Student Association, University of Minnesota 2013-2014
University Council Member, Lahore University of Management Sciences 2009-2010
Student Council Member, Lahore University of Management Sciences 2009-2010
Public Engagement
Newspapers
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Contributed to the Dawn opinion pages, The Friday Times, and the Daily Times.
Blogging
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Contributed to the Pakistan Policy Group blog, Pak Tea House & Naya Daur.
Skills
Software proficiency: Stata (advanced), R (intermediate), MATLAB (basic), SAS (basic), Mathematica (basic), LaTex (intermediate); Microsoft Office Suite (advanced)
Languages: English; Urdu; Hindi; Spanish (beginner)