Governments can adjust tax rates and government spending {fiscal policy}| {fiscal theory} to obtain target GNP and/or control economic cycles.
government revenue
People and businesses receive income from working, spend for personal expenses, and have expectations about economy. Income changes slowly, but spending and expectations can change quickly. Government can control spending using tax policies.
government spending
Government can spend more or less, independently of taxes, because it is the largest and most powerful institution and can increase or decrease debt. See Figure 1.
taxes
Tax decrease with no government-spending change increases demand, because people have more money. See Figure 2.
Tax increase with no government-spending change reduces demand, because people have less money. See Figure 3.
spending
Government-spending decrease with no taxation change decreases government demand. See Figure 4.
Government-spending increase with no taxation change increases government demand. See Figure 5.
spending and taxes
Government-spending decrease with equal tax decrease decreases overall demand somewhat, because government spends all, but tax decrease only fractionally increases private demand. See Figure 6.
Tax increase with government-spending decrease reduces overall demand greatly. See Figure 7.
Tax decrease with government-spending increase increases overall demand greatly. See Figure 8.
Government-spending increase with equal tax increase increases overall demand somewhat, because government spends all, but tax increase only fractionally decreases private demand. See Figure 9.
balanced budget
If government spending equals government revenue, GNP still tends to increase {balanced budget theorem}, because taxation only fractionally reduces private spending, but government spends all.
spending purposes
Government spending allocates resources to public functions, redistributes income, and stabilizes economic fluctuations.
tax effects
Taxation reduces private consumption and saving. Goods taxes keep price high but do not encourage production, because producers do not receive higher price. Fixed percentage taxes, such as sales, property, and other regressive taxes, take more value from lower-income people than from higher-income people. Regressive taxes reduce consumption more than savings. Taxes that assess at higher rates for higher incomes or wealth, such as income taxes and other progressive taxes, take lower percentage of income or wealth from lower-income people. Progressive taxes reduce savings more than consumption.
6-Economics-Macroeconomics-Government Actions
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Date Modified: 2022.0225