Class Details

Economics 450A Winter 2012
Public Finance: Expenditure Policy

SLN: 12821 - Click for meeting times & locations
Click Here for Class Syllabus

Neil Bruce
Office Hours: Monday, Wednesday 11am-noon

Office: Savery 329
Office Phone: (206) 543-5874
brucen@u.washington.edu
Instructor Home Page

Course Description
	Application of normative microeconomic theory to analysis of government expenditures. Rationale for government economic activity, collective choice, public goods, and externalities, income redistribution, public sector pricing, and specific expenditure programs. Prerequisite: ECON 300.
Files for Download
	Second Class Test Format
	Topic 1 Sizing Up Government
	Topic 2 The Market Failure Theory of Government
	Topic 3 Public Goods and Economic Efficiency REVISED
	Topic 4 Public Goods and Market Failure REVISED
	Topic 5 Congestible Public Goods
	Topic 6 Externalities and Market Failure
	Topic 7 Government Policies to Correct for Externalities
	Topic 8 A Theory of Government Decision Making
	Topic 9 Voting and Economic Efficiency
	Topic 10 The Government and Redistribution
	Topic 11 How Inequality and Poverty Are Measured Cumulative share data in table corrected.
	Topic 12 Transfers to Persons With Limited Incomes
	Topic 13 The Effects of Welfare and Welfare Reform
	Topic 14 Social Insurance and Social Security
	Topic 15 Government Health Care Spending
Problem Sets
	Assignment #1 ANSWERS
	Assignment #2 ANSWERS
	Assignment #3 ANSWERS
	Assignment #4 ANSWERS
	Assignment #5 ANSWERS
	Assignment #6 (Optional) ANSWERS CORRECTED!
	Class Test #1 ANSWERS
	Class Test #2 ANSWERS
Useful Links
	Gradebook
	Reading 1 On the Size and Growth of US Government
	Reading 2 Gary Becker on Market Failure
	Reading 3 Prisoners Dilemma and Climate Change
	Reading 4 Does Studying Economics Inhibit cooperation?
	Reading 5B Reduced congestion on SR520
	Reading 5A SR520 Tolls
	Reading 6 Cap and Trade v. Carbon Taxes for Global Warming
	Reading 7 ITQs and the Deadliest Catch
	Reading 8 How Median Voter Theory Explains SCOTUS
	Reading 9 Why Do People Vote? From Pyschology Today. Follow to next post.
	Reading 10A Is Inequality Bad for Society?
	Reading 10 Gini Unbottled--Does Inequality Matter? From Economist Magazine
	Reading 11 Ancient Rome's Gini Ratio
	Reading 12 The Growing Old-Young Wealth Gap
	Reading 13 A/C, Cable and an Xbox: Poverty? Read at least the Executive Summary and Appendix Tables
	Reading 14 A/C, Xbox, etc and Poverty--A Rebuttal Be sure to watch the Colbert Report video
	Reading 15 The New Supplemental Poverty Measure
	Reading 16 Welfare Reform Leaving More in Poverty From the Huffington Post
	Reading 17 Social Security Solvency Myths Part I
	Reading 18 Social Security Solvency Myths Part II
	Reading 19 Let Them Die discussion point about the individual health insurance mandate