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Ch30 Fiscal Policy 06052020 032020pm 04102022 091523am
Ch30 Fiscal Policy 06052020 032020pm 04102022 091523am
Fiscal Policy
After studying this chapter you will be able to
Surplus or Deficit
The federal government’s budget balance equals tax
revenue minus outlays.
If revenues exceed outlays, the government has a budget
surplus.
If outlays exceed revenues, the government has a budget
deficit.
If revenues equal outlays, the government has a balanced
budget.
The projected budget deficit in fiscal 2007 is $370 billion.
The Federal Budget
Revenues
Figure 30.2 shows revenues as a percentage of GDP.
The Federal Budget
Outlays
Figure 30.3 shows outlays as a percentage of GDP.
The Federal Budget
Generational imbalance
is the division of the fiscal
imbalance between the
current and future
generations, assuming that
the current generation will
enjoy the existing levels of
taxes and benefits.
The bars show the scale of
the fiscal imbalance.
Generational Effects of Fiscal Policy
International Debt
How much investment have we paid for by borrowing from
the rest of the world? And how much U.S. government debt
is held abroad?
In June 2006, the United States had a net debt to the rest
of the world of $5.2 trillion.
Of that debt, $2.2 trillion was U.S. government debt.
Total U.S. government debt is $4.1 trillion.
So more than half of the outstanding government debt is
held by foreigners.
Stabilizing the Business Cycle
Discretionary Fiscal
Stabilization
Figure 30.13 shows how
fiscal policy might close a
recessionary gap.
An increase in government
expenditure or a tax cut
increases aggregate
demand.
The multiplier process
increases aggregate
demand further.
Stabilizing the Business Cycle
Automatic Stabilizers
Automatic stabilizers are mechanisms that stabilize real
GDP without explicit action by the government.
Induced taxes and needs-tested spending are automatic
stabilizers.
Taxes that vary with real GDP are called induced taxes.
When real GDP increases in an expansion, wages and
profits rise, so the taxes on these incomes—induced taxes
—rise.
When real GDP decreases in a recession, wages and
profits fall, so the induced taxes on these incomes fall.
Stabilizing the Business Cycle