Nova School of Business and Economics

Public Economics

Code

1115

Academic unit

null

Department

null

Credits

7,5

Teacher in charge

Paulo Côrte-Real

Teaching language

English

Objectives

The course covers the main goals, areas and tools of government intervention in the economy, from a microeconomic viewpoint.

Prerequisites

Mandatory Precedence:

- 1100. Introduction to Microeconomics

Subject matter

1. Introduction: the goals of government intervention (Ch 1) 2 Redistribution and Fairness.

2-1 Utility-based fairness criteria (Ch 2);
2-2 Preference-based fairness criteria (Thomson) 3 Externalities and Public Goods;
3-1 Externalities (Ch 5-6);
3-2 Public Goods (Ch 7);
3-3 Mixed Goods (Ch 11);
3-4 Collective decision-making (Ch 9).
4. Social Insurance.

4-1 Benefits and Costs of Insurance (Ch 12) 4-2 Social Security (Ch 13);
4-3 Unemployment Insurance and Poverty-Alleviation Programs (Ch 14, 17);
4-4 Health Insurance (Ch 15).
5. Taxation.

5-1 Equity implications of taxation (Ch 19);
5-2 Efficiency implications of taxation (Ch 20).

Bibliography

Jonathan Gruber, Public Finance and Public Policy, Worth Publishers (recommended) António Pinto Barbosa, Economia Pública, McGraw Hill (additional) William Thomson (2007), Fair Allocation Rules, Rochester Center for Economic Research Working Paper 539. (additional)

Teaching method

Each week there will be two lectures (1.5 hours each) and a practical session (1.5 hours). Students are expected to attend the lectures and to follow and actively participate in the discussion of concepts and applications. For each thematic chapter, real-life situations are provided to allow for the application of theoretical tools and for the critical appraisal of these tools. In addition, group assignments also intend to complement this learning process.

Evaluation method

The Final Exam is mandatory and must cover the entire span of the course. Its weight in the final grade can be between 30 to 70%. The remainder of the evaluation can consist of class participation, midterm exams, in class tests, etc. Overall, written in class assessment (final exam, midterm) must have a weight of at least 50%.

For the regular exam period (including for grade improvement), the final grade is based on:

A: Final Exam.
B: Midterm (compulsory).
C: Group Assignments.

The final grade will be: 0.5A + 0.25B + 0.25C if A = 8.0; A if A < 8.0

For the resit exam period, the final grade is based exclusively on the exam.

Regular exam period:

Continuous assessment elements (and their weights):

Midterm (compulsory): 0.25
Group Assignments: 0.25

Final exam (and its weight):

Final Exam: 0.5

Resit exam period:

Continuous assessment (and their weights) if different than 100%: none

Final exam (and its weight): 100%

Grade improvement in regular exam period:

Continuous assessment (and their weights) if different than 100%:

Midterm (compulsory): 0.25
Group Assignments: 0.25