Public finance is the subfield of economics that deals with the effects of government policy (in particular taxing of economic agents, spending of social resources to meet specific objectives and financing government debt) upon the overall economic, social and institutional environment of a particular nation. This course is designed to provide students with the tools to analyze these public finance decisions and to have a better sense of the social implications of such decisions.

The course begins with a review of the fundamental issues in Public Economics, namely Pareto inefficiency, market failures attributable to externalities and public goods and the way these concepts define the economic role of the government.

The course then proceeds to an in-depth discussion of cost-benefit analysis of government programs.  We then work through a detailed study of the economic theory of taxation (tax incidence, excess burden of taxation and efficient taxation).

The course ends with discussions on deficit financing, the fiscal policy in the European Union and the extent of public activity in Greece.

Τελευταία τροποποίηση: Τετάρτη, 30 Απριλίου 2014, 2:22 PM