Applied Public Finance

3 Credits · Level: Graduate

This course explores the role of government in countries around the world and the government financing and provision of public goods and services. The course has three goals: First, it aims to teach students key concepts in public finance, including externalities, public goods, social insurance and redistribution. Second, it will compare countries and regions around the world in terms of the size of governments, their expenditures, revenues and deficits, the structure of taxes and expenditures, and the efficiency and equity of government operations. Third, it will introduce students to analytical tools and techniques in public finance analysis. This will include the economic analysis of public projects; empirical approaches for assessing the progressivity of taxes and expenditures; tools for assessing the efficiency of public expenditures; etc. The course expects to develop the following skills and knowledge: knowledge of key concepts in public finance; knowledge of analytical tools and techniques; and technical and practical skills in the analysis of government operations.