A01=David M. Primo
Author_David M. Primo
budget
Category=KFFD
Category=KJMV1
congress
constitutional convention
economics
enforcement
eq_bestseller
eq_business-finance-law
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
federal
finance
government spending
history
institutional design
law
legislation
legislatures
local
loopholes
mandate
nonfiction
policymaking
political science
politics
pork barrel
regulation
rules
social programs
state
tax revenue
taxation
Product details
- ISBN 9780226682600
- Weight: 340g
- Dimensions: 16 x 23mm
- Publication Date: 01 Oct 2007
- Publisher: The University of Chicago Press
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Paperback
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Government spending has increased dramatically in the United States since World War II despite the many rules intended to rein in the insatiable appetite for tax revenue most politicians seem to share. Drawing on examples from the federal and state governments, "Rules and Restraint" explains in lucid, nontechnical prose why these budget rules tend to fail, and proposes original alternatives for imposing much-needed fiscal discipline on our legislators. One reason budget rules are ineffective, David M. Primo shows, is that politicians often create and preserve loopholes to protect programs that benefit their constituents. Another reason is that legislators must enforce their own provisions, an arrangement that is seriously compromised by their unwillingness to abide by rules that demand short-term sacrifices for the sake of long-term gain. Convinced that budget rules enacted through such a flawed legislative process are unlikely to work, Primo ultimately calls for a careful debate over the advantages and drawbacks of a constitutional convention initiated by the states - a radical step that would bypass Congress to create a path toward change.
David M. Primo is assistant professor of political science at the University of Rochester and coauthor of The Plane Truth: Airline Crashes, the Media, and Transportation Policy.
