This book provides theoretical and empirical perspectives on how fiscal policies in Europe and the United States can avoid government bankruptcy.In recent decades, governments have built up substantial public debt, which is often accompanied by a growing public sector and fiscal policies that neglect long-term considerations. The contributors to this CESifo volume consider whether the development of public debt in the United States and six EU countries is sustainable - that is, whether fiscal policies in these countries can be continued without creating the potential for government bankruptcy.The sustainability of public debt presents a challenge not only to public policy design but also to economic theory. This collection is the first book-length analysis of the theoretical foundations of public debt sustainability concepts and their application to the empirical study of actual budgetary policies. Conditions for public debt sustainability are derived and applied to various institutional environments. The country studies cover the United States, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland, with special emphasis in the EU chapters on the fiscal criteria for entrance into the European Monetary Union and the Stability and Growth Pact. The contributors find that in most countries, fiscal policy turns out to be sustainable in the long run and that all countries (with the possible exception of Italy) were able to return to a sustainable path after a period of unsustainability.
Sustainability of Public Debt: Introduction and Overview by Reinhard Neck and Jan-Egbert Sturm 1
2 The Sustainability of Fiscal Policy in the United States by Henning Balm 15
3 Sustainability and Determinants of Italian Public Deficits before and after Maastricht by Emma Galli and Fabio Padovano 51
4 Policy Adjustments and Sustainability of Public Finances in the Netherlands by Jakob de Haan and Jan-Egbert Sturm and Olaf de Groot 85
5 The Long Shadow of "Austrokeynesianism"? Public Debt Sustainability in Austria by Reinhard Neck and Gottfried Haber 107
6 The Stability Pact Pains: A Forward-Looking Assessment of the Reform Debate by Marco Buti and Sylvester Eijffinger and Daniele Franco 131
7 The Welfare State and Strategies toward Fiscal Sustainability in Denmark by Torben M. Andersen and Svend E. Hougaard Jensen and Lars Haagen Pedersen 161
8 Post-Thatcher Fiscal Strategies in the United Kingdom: An Interpretation by Andrew Hughes Hallett 193
9 On the Effectiveness of Debt Brakes: The Swiss Experience by Lars P. Feld and Gebhard Kirchgassner 223
List of Contributors 257
Index