I am Professor of Economics at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. I was born in Chicago in and attended public schools in Chicago and in the San Francisco area. I received a B.A. in Mathematics and Economics from Reed College in 1965, and a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Chicago in 1969. I was an Assistant Professor of Economics at Harvard University from 1969 to 1973, taking a year out in 1970-71 to serve as a Senior Staff Economist at the President's Council of Economic Advisors. I came to Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 1973 as a Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Center for Study of Public Choice there. I was appointed Associate Professor in 1975 and Professor in 1985. I have held visiting appointments as a Research Associate at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, as Professor at the University of Buckingham, in England, and as Visiting Scholar at the American Institue for Economic Research. I have authored more than 80 professional articles, mainly on topics in public finance and efficient public decision-making.