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Fiscal Reform and Government Debt in Japan: A Neoclassical Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Gary Hansen

    (UCLA)

  • Selahattin Imrohoroglu

    (University of Southern California)

Abstract

Past government spending in Japan is imposing a significant fiscal burden that is reflected in a net debt to output ratio near 150 percent. In addition, an aging Japanese society implies that public expenditures and transfers payments relative to output are projected to continue to rise until at least 2050. In this paper we use a standard growth model to measure the size of this burden in the form of additional taxes required to finance these projected expenditures and to stabilize government debt. The fiscal adjustment needed is very large, in the range of 30-40% of total consumption expenditures. Using a distorting tax such as the consumption tax or the labor income tax requires either tax to rise to unprecedented highs, although the former is much less distorting than the latter. The extremely high tax rates we find highlight the importance of considering alternatives that attenuate the projected increases in public spending and/or enlarge the tax base. (Copyright: Elsevier)

Suggested Citation

  • Gary Hansen & Selahattin Imrohoroglu, 2016. "Fiscal Reform and Government Debt in Japan: A Neoclassical Perspective," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 21, pages 201-224, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:red:issued:14-65
    DOI: 10.1016/j.red.2015.04.001
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Government debt; Growth model; Fiscal sustainability; Japan;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E2 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment
    • E62 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Fiscal Policy; Modern Monetary Theory
    • H6 - Public Economics - - National Budget, Deficit, and Debt

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