Session 6: Economics: Monetary and Fiscal Economics Reading 26: Fiscal Policy
LOS a: Explain supply side effects on employment, potential GDP, and aggregate supply, including the income tax and taxes on expenditure, and describe the Laffer curve and its relation to supply side economics.
Michael Vincent and Elizabeth Matthews, economists at Macro Associates, conduct research into the effects of fiscal policy on the economy. Vincent states that government taxing decisions affect the supply of labor. Matthews contends that government taxing decisions affect potential GDP.
Regarding their statements, Vincent and Matthews are:
Fiscal policy refers to the federal government’s decisions regarding government spending and taxing. Income tax increases cause after-tax wages to fall, dampening the incentive to work. Consequently, workers will be less likely to work the same number of hours as they did when their after-tax wages per hour were higher. As income taxes increase, the full-employment supply of labor (a key factor of production) decreases, which causes potential GDP to decrease. Therefore, government taxing decisions affect both the supply of labor and potential GDP. |