Includes index

Part 1 Introduction - public finance and attitudes toward government: doing research in public finance; government at a glance. Part 2 Tools of public finance; tools of positive analysis; tools of normative analysis; consumer and producer surplus. Part 3 Analysis of public expenditure: public goods; preference revelation mechanisms; externalities; political economy; income redistribution - conceptual issues; expenditure programs for the poor; social insurance I - social security and unemployment insurance; social insurance II - health care; cost-benefit analysis; calculating the certainty equivalent value. Part 4 A framework for tax analysis: taxation and income distribution; taxation and efficiency; formula for excess burden; multiple taxes and the theory of the second best; efficient and equitable taxation. Part 5 The United States revenue system; the personal Income Tax; personal taxation and behaviour; the Corporation Tax; deficit finance; taxes on consumption and wealth. Part 6 Multi government public finance; public finance in a federal system; some basic microeconomics.