Publication Policies
The Municipal Finance Journal (MFJ) is devoted to articles that contribute to professional practice and substantive knowledge concerning municipal finance, including tax-exempt financing. MFJ’s coverage includes statutory authorities, health care institutions, private universities, and other issuers of tax-exempt municipal securities. Articles address contemporary municipal, county, and state fiscal issues, particularly as they affect decisions regarding the acquisition, allocation, and management of financial resources in a competitive capital marketplace, and are directed to a professional audience including government executives, debt issuers, attorneys, financial advisors, investment bankers, institutional investors, policy makers, researchers, and others interested in the field.
MFJ is committed to publishing manuscripts that illustrate the breadth of disciplinary perspectives characteristic of municipal financing-for example, legal, financial, economic, and political. MFJ encourages submission of manuscripts by government finance officers, legal and market experts, and academicians and law professors. Since 1992, the Journal has published edited proceedings of the annual national conference of the National Federation of Municipal Analysts.
MFJ emphasizes quality and clarity of exposition. Reviewers consider the following criteria in assessing submissions: value of the information to the journal’s audience, substantive contribution to the broadly defined field of municipal finance, and overall quality of manuscript. The decision to publish a given manuscript is made by the Editor-in-Chief, relying on the recommendations of the peer reviewers.
Submission of a manuscript clearly implies commitment to publish in the journal. Papers previously published or under review by other journals are unacceptable. Articles adapted from book-length works-in-progress will be considered under acceptable copyright arrangements.
Manuscript Specifications. Manuscripts should not exceed 40 typewritten pages; the publisher encourages submission of shorter papers. All textual material-including notes and references-must be double spaced in a full-size typeface, on one side only of 8 ½-by-11-inch good-quality paper, with 12-inch margins all around. All pages must be numbered. References must be placed at the end of the text, on a separate page. Notes may be embedded in the text, but they must be printed as endnotes rather than footnotes.
Artwork, including tables, charts, and graphs, should be placed on separate pages at the end of the text, with proper placement indicated within text (e.g., Insert Table 2 about here). Tables should be prepared in the same software used for text, preferably Microsoft Word. Charts and graphs must be submitted as separate files in Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel and in black and white only. Authors who cannot use those software packages should let the Editor-in-Chief know by email.
Submit the manuscript to the Editor-in-Chief by email in Microsoft Word format (not in pdf format). Do not send a printed copy by postal or delivery service. Be sure to include an abstract of 125 to 150 words, a biographical statement of 50 words or less, and full contact information for each author (email address, mailing address, fax number).
Acceptance: Manuscripts are peer reviewed. Once an article has been formally accepted, the author must sign the requisite permission form and submit the final manuscript to the Editor-in-Chief in electronic form, as described above.
Copyright is retained by the publisher, and articles are subject to editorial revision. There is no payment for articles; authors receive 10 copies of the issue in which the article is published. Manuscripts not accepted for publication are not returned. Authors should keep a copy of any submission for their files.
For manuscript submission and inquiries, please contact:
Dr. Justin Marlowe, Editor-in-chief,
Municipal Finance Journal
Email: JMarlowe@uchicago.edu
Mail:
Dr. Justin Marlowe
Editor-in-Chief, Municipal Finance Journal
Harris Public Policy
1307 E. 60th St.
Chicago, IL 60637
For corporate and general Journal information, please visit: http://www.civicresearchinstitute.com/mfj.html
For Journal production matters (i.e., preparation of accepted manuscripts for production), please contact:
Peggy Riccardi
Managing Editor, Municipal Finance Journal, Civic Research Institute, Inc.
4478 US Route 27,
PO Box 585
Kingston, NJ 08528
609-466-0215
mbriccardi@hotmail.com