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  • 1
    Language: English
    Pages: 35 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.655
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: The financial crisis and economic downturn are going to weigh on fiscal positions in OECD countries over the short to medium-term, both through the operation of automatic stabilisers and the enactment of discretionary fiscal stimulus packages. However, the strategic policy options facing OECD countries are mainly determined by the soundness of their underlying fiscal positions which vary substantially. This paper first describes how OECD economies are situated with respect to underlying fiscal balances and net government debt. A number of countries seem to enjoy favourable fiscal positions with underlying fiscal surpluses, low government debt or even positive net financial asset positions. When taking account, as far as possible, of implicit liabilities associated with ageing populations and resource-based revenues, fiscal positions still vary greatly across countries. The paper then examines the criteria involved in deciding whether government financial asset accumulation is in excess of needs and the use to which any excess government saving might be put, whether increasing public spending or reducing taxes. Finally, the determinants of the optimal size of the government balance sheet for any given desired net debt position are discussed.
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  • 2
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    Online Resource
    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Language: English
    Pages: 17 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.598
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: Tax receipts surged between 2005 and 2007 in many OECD countries, resulting in significant improvements in headline fiscal positions. As a consequence, pressures for tax cuts and for public spending increases have emerged. In the past, responding to such demands has permanently weakened budget positions as revenue windfalls ultimately proved to be temporary. Hence, the opportunity to address structural deficit problems and prepare for future demographic trends has been lost, and the ability to respond to subsequent cyclical downturns has been weakened. This paper provides an analysis of the factors behind recent revenue buoyancy and examines past responses to unexpected revenue gains. It also discusses whether improved information on fiscal positions and future fiscal challenges, combined with relevant fiscal rules, might help in avoiding a repetition of past errors in fiscal policy.
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  • 3
    Language: English
    Pages: 34 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.642
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: Frequent recourse to large one-off operations in a number of OECD countries has undermined the accuracy of cyclically adjusted fiscal balances as a measure of both the sustainability of public finance and the fiscal stance. This paper first provides detailed information on the nature and amount of these one-offs for 9 OECD countries. The paper then presents a new indicator – the “underlying” fiscal balance – which effectively eliminates the impact of one-offs and cyclical developments. One-offs are derived as the deviations from trend in net capital transfers, i.e. from widely available national account data. This approach provides a consistent treatment of one-offs both across countries and over time, avoiding the potential information biases which could result from an individual identification of one-offs.
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  • 4
    Language: English
    Pages: 75 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.627
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: This paper aims to shed light on the contribution of health care and other determinants to the health status of the population and to provide evidence on whether or not health care resources are producing similar value for money across OECD countries. First, it discusses the pros and cons of various indicators of the health status, concluding that mortality and longevity indicators have some drawbacks but remain the best available proxies. Second, it suggests that changes in health care spending, lifestyle factors (smoking and alcohol consumption as well as diet), education, pollution and income have been important factors behind improvements in health status. Third, it derives estimates of countries’ relative performance in transforming health care resources into longevity from two different methods – panel data regressions and data envelopment analysis – which give remarkably consistent results. The empirical estimates suggest that potential efficiency gains might be large enough to raise life expectancy at birth by almost three years on average for OECD countries, while a 10% increase in total health spending would increase life expectancy by three to four months.
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  • 5
    Language: English
    Pages: 39 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.554
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: A key policy challenge in most OECD countries is to improve outcomes of the health care system while containing its costs. Benchmarking countries and identifying best practices to enhance public spending cost-effectiveness would, in this regard, be a useful exercise. This paper presents three main options for measuring effectiveness in the health care sector, discusses their pros and cons, including data availability and the possibility of whether these options would allow an analysis of how the institutional setting shapes spending effectiveness.
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  • 6
    Language: English
    Pages: 51 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.543
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: This paper presents composite indicators of the institutional and policy characteristics of educational systems, collated from the questionnaire responses of 26 Member countries. These indicators provide an overview of the institutional framework in the primary and secondary education sector and are constructed so as to be used for the analysis of international differences in spending efficiency. The key features of the institutional setting in the non-tertiary education sector are grouped under three headings: i) the ability to prioritise and allocate resources efficiently (through decentralisation and mechanisms matching resources to specific needs); ii) the efficiency in managing spending at the local level (through outcome-focused policies and managerial autonomy), and iii) the efficiency in service provision (through benchmarking and user choice). For each country, an intermediate indicator is computed for each of these six institutional properties. Composite indicators then combine the six intermediate indicators of spending efficiency into a single, aggregate measure. Results are presented and some of their implications are discussed. Overall, the characteristics of the institutional framework in the non-tertiary public education sector seem to be very favourable, compared to OECD average, in the United Kingdom, Australia, Norway, Denmark and the Netherlands, whereas results are less favourable for the Czech Republic, Greece, Luxembourg, Japan, Turkey, Hungary, Belgium (French speaking community), Switzerland and Austria.
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  • 7
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    Paris : OECD Publishing
    In:  OECD journal on budgeting Vol. 7, no. 1, p. 1-41
    ISSN: 1681-2336
    Language: English
    Pages: 42 p
    Titel der Quelle: OECD journal on budgeting
    Publ. der Quelle: Paris : Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2001
    Angaben zur Quelle: Vol. 7, no. 1, p. 1-41
    Keywords: Governance
    Abstract: This article examines key institutional drivers that may contribute to improving public sector efficiency and focuses on one of them in more detail: performance information and its role and use in the budget process (“performance budgeting”).
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  • 8
    Language: English
    Pages: 67 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.546
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: This paper assesses the potential to raise public spending efficiency in the primary and secondary education sector. Resource availability per pupil has increased significantly over the past decade in a number of countries; often in attempting to exploit the link between educational attainment and growth. However, available evidence reveals only a weak correlation between increased resource availability and pupil performance. In order to draw cross-country comparisons...
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  • 9
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    Paris : OECD Publishing
    In:  OECD journal: economic studies Vol. 2005, no. 2, p. 141-181
    ISSN: 1995-2856
    Language: English
    Pages: 51 p
    Parallel Title: Parallelausg. Les règles budgétaires s'appliquant aux collectivités territoriales
    Titel der Quelle: OECD journal: economic studies
    Publ. der Quelle: Paris : Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development, 2008
    Angaben zur Quelle: Vol. 2005, no. 2, p. 141-181
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: Rules constraining the discretionary powers of budget policymakers have become widespread among OECD economies, and the expanding role played by decentralised institutions in providing public services has led to their increasing adoption at the sub-central level.
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  • 10
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    Paris : OECD Publishing
    In:  Revue économique de l'OCDE Vol. 2005, no. 2, p. 153-197
    ISSN: 1684-3444
    Language: French
    Pages: 56 p
    Parallel Title: Parallelausg. Sub-central government fiscal rules
    Titel der Quelle: Revue économique de l'OCDE
    Publ. der Quelle: Paris : OCDE, 1998
    Angaben zur Quelle: Vol. 2005, no. 2, p. 153-197
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: Les règles qui limitent les pouvoirs discrétionnaires des responsables des politiques budgétaires sont aujourd’hui courantes dans les économies de l’OCDE, et le rôle croissant que jouent les institutions décentralisées dans l’offre des services publics a entraîné leur généralisation à l’échelon territorial. Des règles bien conçues permettent de tirer des gains d’efficience de l’autonomie locale tout en facilitant l’assainissement budgétaire, en amortissant les chocs économiques et en répondant aux objectifs de viabilité à long terme des finances publiques, tâches d’autant plus urgentes que, selon les prévisions, les services rendus par les collectivités territoriales seront de plus en plus sollicités du fait du vieillissement de la population.
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  • 11
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    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Language: English
    Pages: 48 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.436
    Keywords: Economics ; Spain
    Abstract: In about two decades, Spain was transformed from one of the most centralised countries to one of the most decentralised. Spending functions were devolved rapidly. The regions have exercised their discretionary powers quite extensively and innovative policies have been implemented. But devolution was also accompanied by a hike in public employment and pressures on public spending, reflecting duplication in resources and poor co-ordination across and between government levels. The recent devolution of taxing powers could raise the accountability of the regions and, thus, cost-consciousness, although their effective use has been limited. Securing fiscal discipline would require better information on sub-national governments’ policies and outcomes so as to allow citizens to press for improved performance. The financing system of the regions also needs to be reformed to ensure sustainability in the face of changing demographics, while the fiscal rules need to be upgraded to avoid recourse to off-budget operations. This Working Paper relates to the 2005 OECD Economic Survey of Spain (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/spain).
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  • 12
    Language: English
    Pages: 49 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.416
    Keywords: Economics ; Japan
    Abstract: Revamping fiscal relations across levels of government is of paramount importance in supporting fiscal consolidation and public sector effectiveness. This paper analyses a number of problems, including regulations that limit local governments’ ability to innovate and respond to local citizens’ preferences, the inefficient system of intergovernmental grants, the complex structure of local taxes and fiscal rules which are too lenient to secure fiscal discipline. The paper concludes that the grant system should be reformed to promote local governments’ incentives to introduce innovations so as to better respond to needs at lower cost. Barriers to the effective use of sub-national governments’ taxing powers should be removed while efforts should be made to keep the tax system as simple and neutral as possible. Existing fiscal rules and market instruments should be hardened. This would require that the central government state clearly that it will not intervene as a lender of last ...
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  • 13
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    Paris : OECD Publishing
    Language: English
    Pages: 47 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.453
    Keywords: Economics ; Mexico
    Abstract: Enhanced autonomy of sub-national governments has spurred innovative management. Spending assignments across levels of government, however, often overlap and/or are not yet fully understood by most citizens. Sub-national governments’ accountability is further reduced by the heavy reliance on federal transfers, as opposed to own-revenues (taxes and user fees). In addition, the use of federal transfers as collateral for states' borrowing potentially undermines the role of financial markets in disciplining fiscal behaviour. Getting the most out of decentralisation would thus require a national agreement clarifying responsibilities for each level of government. Improving sub-national governments’ incentives in delivering cost-effective public services would further require improving the quality of information on actual spending and outcomes, raising the volume of their own taxes and reforming the grant systems. Decentralisation should also be more consistent with the aim of improving interregional equity in obtaining access to core public services. This Working Paper relates to the 2005 OECD Economic Survey of Mexico (www.oecd.org/eco/surveys/mexico).
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  • 14
    Language: English
    Pages: 77 p. , 21 x 29.7cm
    Series Statement: OECD Economics Department Working Papers no.465
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: Against a background of mounting demands for spending on services provided by sub-central governments, this paper examines how fiscal rules can help to ensure that pressure on resources is minimised and available resources are used efficiently. Drawing on questionnaire responses and other sources, this paper gives a detailed picture of fiscal rules for sub-central governments in place among a number of OECD countries. The paper examines the rationales for using fiscal rules, the various impacts fiscal rules can have, the factors making for effective implementation and the interactions between the various types of rule. It then constructs a number of synthetic sub-indicators designed to assess the extent to which sub-central government fiscal frameworks exhibit favourable characteristics for the achievement of fiscal objectives. It concludes with the construction of a composite indicator based on the combined impacts in the different areas of fiscal policy.
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  • 15
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    Paris : OECD Publishing
    In:  Revue économique de l'OCDE Vol. 2003, no. 2, p. 125-184
    ISSN: 1684-3444
    Language: French
    Pages: 70 p
    Parallel Title: Parallelausg. Enhancing the Cost Effectiveness of Public Spending: Experience in OECD Countries
    Titel der Quelle: Revue économique de l'OCDE
    Publ. der Quelle: Paris : OCDE, 1998
    Angaben zur Quelle: Vol. 2003, no. 2, p. 125-184
    Keywords: Economics
    Abstract: Les dépenses publiques en proportion du PIB ont augmenté régulièrement dans la zone OCDE jusqu’au milieu des années 90, mais cette tendance s’est atténuée depuis. L’augmentation des dépenses résultant du développement continu des programmes sociaux a été en partie compensée par des facteurs temporaires ou ponctuels. Cependant, il est probable que les pressions sur les dépenses publiques vont s’intensifier, notamment sous l’effet du vieillissement des populations. Bien que les dépenses publiques aient un rôle à jouer dans la poursuite des grands objectifs...
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