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Fiscal Policy after the Great Recession

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  • Alberto Alesina

Abstract

The Great Recession has severely hit the economies of most of the countries. Given that, fiscal policies have gained back a central role in the debate as a tool to recover from this situation. This paper provides an overview about the main controversial issues related to the fiscal policy. In particular, we analyze the role and the different effects played by discretionary counter-cyclical policies – say, for instance, tax cuts or increased government spending. Disagreement on this topic follows from the fact that it is extremely difficult to isolate the exogenous effect of these policies on GDP. We review several ways in which economists have tried to deal with this problem of estimation. Finally, we discuss why spending-based adjustments are preferable and less likely to be costly than tax-based ones and why large fiscal consolidation accompanied by appropriate policies can be much less costly than what we think. Copyright International Atlantic Economic Society 2012

Suggested Citation

  • Alberto Alesina, 2012. "Fiscal Policy after the Great Recession," Atlantic Economic Journal, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 40(4), pages 429-435, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:atlecj:v:40:y:2012:i:4:p:429-435
    DOI: 10.1007/s11293-012-9337-z
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    1. Adi Brender & Allan Drazen, 2008. "How Do Budget Deficits and Economic Growth Affect Reelection Prospects? Evidence from a Large Panel of Countries," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(5), pages 2203-2220, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Alberto Alesina & Silvia Ardagna, 2013. "The Design of Fiscal Adjustments," Tax Policy and the Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 27(1), pages 19-68.
    2. Giavazzi, Francesco & Alesina, Alberto & Favero, Carlo A., 2012. "The output effect of fiscal consolidations," CEPR Discussion Papers 9105, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    3. Zabavnik, Darja & Verbič, Miroslav, 2025. "Revisiting the impact of financial shocks on the fiscal position of euro area countries," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 622-635.
    4. Harashima, Taiji, 2017. "Should a Government Fiscally Intervene in a Recession and, If So, How?," MPRA Paper 78053, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. repec:ecr:col037:5367 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Iain McMenamin & Michael Breen & Juan Muñoz-Portillo, 2015. "Austerity and credibility in the Eurozone," European Union Politics, , vol. 16(1), pages 45-66, March.
    7. António Afonso & Luís Martins, 2016. "Monetary Developments and Expansionary Fiscal Consolidations: Evidence from the EMU," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(3), pages 247-265, July.
    8. Luiz de Mello, 2013. "What Can Fiscal Policy Do in the Current Recession? A Review of Recent Literature and Policy Options," Hacienda Pública Española / Review of Public Economics, IEF, vol. 204(1), pages 113-139, March.
    9. World Bank, 2013. "India Development Update, April 2013," World Bank Publications - Reports 16542, The World Bank Group.
    10. I. O. Oseni & A. T. Okwu & D. A. Babalola & S. B. Adegboyega, 2019. "Recession and the Challenge of Sustainable Economic Growth in Nigeria: An Evaluation of Macroeconomic Policies," Tanzanian Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Dar es Salaam, vol. 9(1), pages 93-112.
    11. Cid, Camilo & Matus López, Mauricio, 2013. "Crisis y financiamiento de la salud. La Gran Recesión en los países sudamericanos [Crisis and health funding. The Great Recession in South American Countries]," MPRA Paper 105442, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Solikin, Akhmad & Nizar, Muhammad Afdi, 2022. "Government Revenue and Government Spending Nexus: A Testing Hypothesis for Indonesia," MPRA Paper 118556, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. repec:ecr:col037:5372 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Juan A. Román-Aso & Héctor Bellido & Lorena Olmos, 2025. "When government’s economic ideology shapes income redistribution. Empirical evidence from the OECD," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 23(1), pages 177-204, March.
    15. Vladimir Filipovski & Taki Fiti & Borce Trenovski, 2016. "Efficiency of the Fiscal Policy and the Fiscal Multipliers – The Case of the Republic of Macedonia," Economic Studies journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 1, pages 3-23.
    16. Gonzalo Caballero, 2013. "Effects of Fiscal and Monetary Policy in the Great Recession," Economies, MDPI, vol. 1(2), pages 1-4, September.
    17. Şen, Hüseyin & Kaya, Ayşe, 2015. "Growth enhancing effect of discretionary fiscal policy shocks: Keynesian, Weak Keynesian or Non-Keynesian?," MPRA Paper 65976, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 05 Aug 2015.
    18. Dornean Adina & Oanea Dumitru-Cristian, 2022. "The Effectiveness of Fiscal-Budgetary Measures to Counteract the COVID-19 Crisis. Evidence from EU Countries," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 16(1), pages 137-151, January.
    19. Clements A.Akinsoyinu, 2015. "The Great Financial Crisis: How Effective is Macroeconomic Policy Response in the United Kingdom?," International Journal of Finance & Banking Studies, Center for the Strategic Studies in Business and Finance, vol. 4(2), pages 01-10, April.

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