As countries recover from the coronavirus pandemic, they are confronted with an even more challenging debt crisis. Xavier Debrun argues in the foreword that in deciding where we go from here that there is no longer a consensus regarding the optimum design and enforcement of fiscal rules. Rather we must address a series of questions and challenges to the conventional wisdom. This readings book provides an opportunity for scholars to explore these questions from an international perspective, with reference to European countries, and emerging nations as well as the United States.
Barry W. Poulson is emeritus professor of Economics at the University of Colorado. John Merrifield is associate editor of the Nonpartisan Education Review, and past editor of the Journal of School Choice. Steve H. Hanke is professor of Applied Economics and founder & co-director of The Johns Hopkins Institute for Applied Economics, Global Health, and the Study of Business Enterprise.
Chapter 1: Organizing Congress for Budget Reforms by Kurt COUCHMAN Chapter 2: Debt Fatigue and the Climacteric in U.S. Economic Growth by John MERRIFIELD and Barry POULSON Chapter 3: Preparing for the Next Crisis: Lessons from the Successful Swedish Fiscal Framework by Lars JONUNG and Fredrik NG ANDERSSON Chapter 4: The Swiss Federal Debt Brake and its Unbudgeted Surpluses by Vera Z. Eichenauer and Jan-Egbert Sturm Chapter 5: The German Debt Brake: Success Factors and Challenges by Lars P. Feld and Wolf H. Reuter Chapter 6: A Money Doctor's Reflections on Currency Reforms and Hard Budget Constraints: A Stroll Down Memory Lane by Steve H. Hanke Chapter 7: Fiscal Rules and Public Debt: An Emerging Market Perspective by Pablo Guidotti Chapter 8: Populist Economic Thought: the Legacy of Juan Domingo Peron by Carlos Newland and Emilio OCampo Chapter 9: Monetary Policy and the Worsening U.S. Debt Crisis by Norbert J. Michel Chapter 10: The Federal Reserve and the Debt Crisis by Tom Saving Chapter 11: The High Costs of Fiscal and Monetary Anomie: Argentina since 1945 by Emilio OCampo Chapter 12: The Failure to Establish Effective Rules for Financing U.S. Federal Entitlement Programs by Charles Blahous Chapter 13: Fiscal Rules for Social Security and Medicare: Would Accrual Accounting Help? By James C. Capretta
With many national governments around the world increasing their debt at unsustainable rates, this volume assembles a distinguished group of contributors who take a sobering look at factors behind the problem and potential solutions to address it. The volume draws on international experience to show that, while nations with sustainable spending and debt policies are rare, some countries have succeeded. Public Debt Sustainability: International Perspectives makes an important contribution to the debate on responsible fiscal policy. -- Randall G. Holcombe, Florida State University
