Intergovernmental transfers are transfers of funds designated for education from one level of government to another. The restriction to funds earmarked for education is very important in order to avoid ambiguity about funding sources. General-purpose intergovernmental transfers are not included (e.g., revenue sharing grants, general fiscal equalisation grants, or distributions of shared taxes from a national government to provinces, states, or Länder), even where such transfers provide the funds that regional or local authorities draw on to finance education.