Content and objectives
To perform a public policy analysis, it is necessary to understand how public decisions affect the economy. The introduction of regulation (e.g. a reform to the health care sector or to the pensions system in a given country) or price mechanisms (i.e. taxes and subsidies) and the direct provision of goods and services (e.g. education or security) are some of the most well-known forms of interventions of governments in the economies. All of these impact the behavior of economic agents and often it is necessary to conduct a thorough empirical analysis to conclude on their consequences. This course focuses on the fundamental concepts of the economics of the public sector in order to provide the participants with the required theoretical background to assess public policies.

The main aim of this course is to present in a systematic manner the fundamental concepts of the economics of the public sector and describe how public decisions affect economic agents.

Objectives of the course are:

(i) That students understand thoroughly the fundamental concepts of public economics by means of reading and understanding the basic and more advanced literature;

(ii) That students become capable of using the basic concepts of public economics for conducting a public policy analysis; and

(iii) That students become capable of interpreting public policy analysis done by others, based on their knowledge of public economics.

Literature

• Public Finance and Public Policy, 1st Edition. New York: Worth Publishers. 2005. Policy Analysis: Concepts and Practice by David L. Weimer; Aidan R. Vining
• Further literature tba