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Debts and Deficits with Fragmented Fiscal Policymaking

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  • Andres Velasco

Abstract

This paper develops a political-economic model of fiscal policy - one in which government resources are a common property' out of which interest groups can finance expenditures on their preferred items. This setup has striking macroeconomic implications. Transfers are higher than a benevolent planner would choose; fiscal deficits emerge even when there are no reasons for intertemporal smoothing, and in the long run government debt tends to be excessively high; peculiar time profiles for transfers can emerge, with high positive net transfers early on giving way to high taxes later on; and multiple dynamic equilibrium paths can occur starting at the same initial level of government debt.

Suggested Citation

  • Andres Velasco, 1997. "Debts and Deficits with Fragmented Fiscal Policymaking," NBER Working Papers 6286, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:6286
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Buchanan, James M. & Yoon, Yong J., 2004. "Majoritarian exploitation of the fiscal commons: general taxes-differential transfers," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 73-90, March.
    3. Sell, Friedrich L., 2003. "Die Stabilitätsprogramme der EU: Anspruch und Wirklichkeit in den ersten vier Jahren der Europäischen Währungsunion," Working Papers in Economics 2003,2, Bundeswehr University Munich, Economic Research Group.
    4. Juan Carlos Echeverry & Jorge Alexander Bonilla & Andrés Moya, 2006. "Rigideces Institucionales y Flexibilidad Presupuestaria: Origen, Motivación y Efectos sobre el Presupuesto," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 9091, Inter-American Development Bank.
    5. Charles R. Hankla, 2013. "Fragmented Legislatures and the Budget: Analyzing Presidential Democracies," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(2), pages 200-228, July.
    6. Juan Carlos Echeverry & Jorge Alexander Bonilla & Andrés Moya, 2006. "Rigideces Institucionales y Flexibilidad Presupuestaria: Origen, Motivación y Efectos sobre el Presupuesto," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 2303, Inter-American Development Bank.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H3 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents
    • H6 - Public Economics - - National Budget, Deficit, and Debt

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