Competitive Governments: An Economic Theory of Politics and Public Finance

by Albert Breton

Overview

Competitive Governments systematically explores the hypothesis that governments are internally competitive, that they are competitive in their relations with each other and in their relations with other institutions in society which, like them, supply consuming households with goods and services. Breton contends that competition not only serves to bring the political system to an equilibrium, but it also leads to a revelation of the households' true demand functions for publicly provided goods and services and to the molding of a link between the quantities and the qualities demanded and supplied and the tax prices paid for these goods and services.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521646284
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	09/28/1998
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	404
Product dimensions:	6.06(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.91(d)

Table of Contents

Preface; Part I. Compound Governments: 1. The conceptual framework; 2. Demand and its revelation; 3. Checks and balances; 4. Budgetary processes; 5. Consent, suffrage, and support; 6. Hierarchy and bureaucracy; Part II. Governmental Systems: 7. A retrospective overview; 8. The organization of governmental systems; 9. Competition, stability, and central governments; 10. The world order; Part III. Socio-Political Structures: 11. The size of the nonmarket sector; 12. The growth of governments; Conclusion; Appendices: A. Long-term budget deficits; B. The power of 'small' groups; C. The independence of judiciaries; D. Information and pressure; R. An empirical Wicksellian connection?; F. Overlap and duplication; G. Structure and stability of federal states; References; Name index; Subject index.

Editorial Reviews

"Breton traverses an impressive array of disciplines and scholars....an optimistic look at the possibility of efficient solutions within the context of current democratic political structures." Choice

"...the author is careful and thorough in laying out his arguments, and he challenges the reader to think about topics such as fiscal federalism and intragovernmental competition in a new light. The text is rich with ideas, full of thought provoking discussions and well informed by past work in the field." Thomas J. Nechyba, Journal of Economic Literature

"...the book makes interesting and stimulating reading and is likely to be influential in shaping research in the future." Thomas J. Nechyba, Journal od Economic Literature

"This book presents many useful insights....everyone should appreciate the novel arguments presented in this book." Donald Wittman, Southern Economic Journal

From the Publisher