20th century public expenditure

Author: Vito Tanzi (USA), Ludger Schuknecht (Germany)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: This book explores the changes in government fiscal functions in the 20th century. During this century, government expenditures in all industrialized countries have increased significantly. However, the authors find that over the past 35 years, the growth in government spending has not brought much additional social and economic welfare. This suggests that public spending in industrialized countries could be much lower than the current level without sacrificing important social policy goals. To this end, the authors propose a vision for the future role of the state—globalization demands and people desire a "lean" yet "generous" state.