Handbook of Public Economics (Volume 3) (H/C)

The Field of Public Economics Has Been Changing Rapidly in Recent Years, and the Sixteen Chapters Contained in This Handbook Survey Many of the New Developments. As a Field, Public Economics is Defined by Its Objectives Rather Than Its Techniques and Much of What is New is the Application of Modern Methods of Economic Theory and Econometrics to Problems That Have Been Addressed by Economists for Over Two Hundred Years. More Generally, the Discussion of Public Finance Issues Also Involves Elements of Political Science, Finance and Philosophy. These Connections Are Evidence in Several of the Chapters That Follow. Public Economics is the Positive and Normative Study of Government's Effect on the Economy. We Attempt to Explain Why Government Behaves As It Does, How Its Behavior Influences the Behavior of Private Firms and Households, and What the Welfare Effects of Such Changes in Behavior Are.Following Musgrave (1959) One May Imagine Three Purposes for Government Intervention in the Econo