I am an interdisciplinary public policy scholar. My research areas include public finance, political economy, and urban economics. Through rigorous research, I want to develop actionable solutions that address public policy issues. My papers focus on fairness and efficiency in tax policies, housing and homelessness, regional integration in urban governance, and income security. I enjoy reading Albert O. Hirschman, Deirdre McCloskey, and Christopher Hitchens, among many.
WORKING PAPERS
Weijie Yang and Soomi Lee. “Shanghai’s Residential Property Tax Pilot on Housing Prices.” Under Review.
“Identifying Effective Programs to Exit Homelessness: A System-wide Perspective Using Machine Learning.” With Minjae Yun.
“Welfare Consequences of Mobility Restrictions in the Tiebout Model: An Agent-Based Modeling Approach.” With Yuri Mansury.
“Governance Structure and Inclusive Recovery of the U.S. Metropolitan Areas: Comparisons between the Great Recession and the COVID-19 Pandemic.” With Shu Wang.
“The Salience of Stimulus Checks during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence from Google Trends.” With Jekyung Lee and Taeyong Park.
“Fiscal Performance under the Regional Tax Base Sharing Program: A Case in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area.”
PUBLICATIONS
Soomi Lee. Forthcoming. “The Cost of Basic Income: Beyond the Prototype, Towards the Varieties of Basic Income Experiences.” in Robert Merrill & Catarina Neves eds., Foundations of Basic Income: Research Landscape, Political Feasibility and Ecological Impact. Palgrave. Chapter 7.
Soomi Lee. Forthcoming. “Land Use: Green and Blue Areas,” In Peter Nijkamp, Kingsley Haynes, and Karima Kourtit eds., Encyclopedia: The World of Regional Science. Edward Elgar.
Soomi Lee & Adam Eckerd. 2024. “Mitigating Displacement from Green Gentrification: Examining the Role of Housing Cost Control Measures.” In Heather Campbell, Yusim Kim, and Adam Eckerd, eds., Green Gentrification and Environmental Injustice: A Complexity Approach. Chapter 8. Springer Nature.
Soomi Lee & Taeyong Park. 2024. “Monitoring Public Interest and Sentiment on Basic Income: Using Google and Twitter Data in the U.S.” Basic Income Studies. Online First.
Soomi Lee. 2023. “Banking Infrastructure and the Paycheck Protection Program during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Regional Studies 57(1): 84-96.
Soomi Lee & Shu Wang. 2023. “Impacts of Political Fragmentation on Inclusive Economic Resilience: Examining American Metropolitan Areas after the Great Recession.” Urban Studies 60(1): 26-45. (Finalist for the 2023 Best Paper Award in Urban Studies)
Soomi Lee. 2021. “Politics of Universal and Unconditional Social Benefits: Examining Attitudes toward Basic Income.” Basic Income Studies 16(2): 191-208.
Soomi Lee. 2021. “Collaborative Public Management in American Fiscal Federalism: Exploring Legislative Alternatives.” In Jack Meek (ed.), Handbook of Collaborative Public Management. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing, Chapter 19, pp. 283-295.
Soomi Lee. 2020. “Parcel Tax in California: Findings from New Data Sources.” Cityscape: Journal of Policy Development and Research 22(2): 63-73.
Soomi Lee. 2020. “Fiscal Therapy: Curing America’s Debt Addiction and Investing in the Future by William G. Gale.” Journal of Policy Analysis and Management 39(3): 858-862.
Soomi Lee. 2019. “Political Economy of the Parcel Tax in California School Districts.” Public Finance Review 47(5): 864-892.
Susan Exon and Soomi Lee. 2019. “Mediator’s Ability to Establish Trust and Rapport in a Video Collaborated Environment.” Stetson Law Review 49(1): 109-148.
Soomi Lee and Mehmet Tosun. 2019. “Effects of Parcel Taxes on Fiscal Condition in the Post-Prop 13 Era in California: A Regression Discontinuity Approach.” The 112th Annual Conference Proceedings, National Tax Association, Washington D.C.
Soomi Lee. 2018. “Attitudes Toward Universal Basic Income and Welfare State in Europe: A Research Note.” Basic Income Studies 13(1): 1-9.
Soomi Lee. 2018. “Do States Circumvent Constitutional Limits on Taxing Power? Examining Time-Varying Effects of Supermajority Requirements to Raise Taxes.” State Politics & Policy Quarterly 18(4): 417-440. (Best paper award, Western Social Science Association Annual Conference – Public Finance and Budgeting Section)
Soomi Lee and Hao Sun. 2018. “Discover and Diffuse a New Property Tax Base: Spatial Analysis of School Parcel Taxes in California School Districts.” The 111th Annual Conference Proceedings, National Tax Association, Washington D.C.
Soomi Lee & Kyungmee Park. 2018. “Attitudes Toward Welfare Expansion with a Tax Increase in South Korea.” Korean Political Science Review 52(3): 5-29.
Soomi Lee. 2018. “The Scope and Use of Local Parcel Tax in California: New Findings from a New Database.” The 111th Annual Conference Proceedings, National Tax Association, Washington D.C.
Soomi Lee. 2016. “Hopeless Future and the Desire for Welfare Expansion: Testing the Prospect of Upward Mobility Hypothesis in South Korea.” Social Science Journal. 53(4): 545-554.
Soomi Lee, Dongwon Dan Lee, and Thomas E. Borcherding. 2015. “Ethnic Diversity and Public Goods: New Evidence from American Cities and School Districts.” Urban Affairs Review 52(5): 685-713.
Soomi Lee. 2014. “The Effect of Supermajority Vote Requirements for Tax Increase in California: A Synthetic Control Method Approach.” State Politics & Policy Quarterly 14(4): 414-436.
Soomi Lee. 2013. “Racial Heterogeneity and Medicaid Expenditure in the U.S. States: A Longitudinal Analysis.” Journal of Socio-Economics 45: 28-37.
Soomi Lee. 2013. “Effect of Public Health Insurance Programs on Immigrant Children’s Cognitive Skills in Los Angeles Metropolitan Area.” Paper presented at the Western Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Hollywood, CA.
Soomi Lee. 2010. “Subjective Congruence for Public Expenditure: A Political Transactions Cost Approach.” Conference Paper for the Western Social Science Association Meeting, Vancouver, Canada.