This course analyzes the role and effect of government fiscal policy on the economy. The course focuses on microeconomic issues, and, while presenting a theoretical framework for understanding the effects of government, is also concerned with evaluating the performance of governments. Much of the class discussion will be devoted to consideration of public policy issues that are currently under debate in the United States and elsewhere. Specific topics to be covered include the effects of spending on public infrastructure and public education, health insurance and the market for medical care, cost-benefit analysis of government programs, and various issues in tax policy: income distribution, the taxation of the family, environmental taxation, IRA's and saving, the taxation of capital gains, corporate taxation, tax incidence, tax reform, enterprise zones, and international taxation.