Fiscal slack, budget shocks, and performance in public organizations: evidence from public schools
研究了公立学校中财政松弛（分为吸收和未吸收两类）对绩效的影响，发现未吸收松弛仅在重大负面预算冲击时有益，而吸收松弛在无冲击时有害。
Some scholars equate fiscal slack with organizational inefficiency, while others argue that it is a useful environmental buffer. This study takes the first step in reconciling these opposing views, by classifying fiscal slack as absorbed and unabsorbed slack in public organizations. In a sample of 1,000 Texas public school districts over 17 years, fund balance (unabsorbed fiscal slack) does not seem to affect student performance, unless there is a major downward budget shock. In the absence of a negative budget shock, non-instructional spending per pupil (absorbed fiscal slack) has a negative impact on performance change in an average school district, but no meaningful impact on student performance during a major budget shock.