A Political Economy Perspective on Public Debt

Detail

About the Author

Kim Young-shin

Kim Young-shin earned a Ph.D. in Economics from George Mason University.

He previously served as a Research Fellow at the Korea Economic Research Institute and as President of the Market Economy Association. He has also served as a specialist member of the Government Performance Evaluation Committee under the Prime Minister`s Office, a member of the Local Public Enterprise Innovation Group under the Ministry of the Interior, and a member of the National Pension Committee under the Ministry of Health and Welfare.
He is currently a professor in the School of Economics and Trade at Keimyung University and serves as President of the Korean Association for Public Choice Studies.

His primary research areas are public choice theory and economic trade policy. Major publications include Beyond Politics: The Origins of Government Failure (co-translation, 2023), Economics: Principles of the Market Economy (co-authored, 2022), "Intellectual Property Rights on Digital Goods and Global Profit Strategy: Rational Choice Approach" (Journal of Trade and Commerce, 2023), and "On the stability of U.S. politics: post-sample forecasts and refinements of the Congleton–Shughart models of Social Security and Medicare benefit levels" (co-authored, Public Choice, 2020).

Table of Contents

I. Introduction
II. Public Debt: Current Status and Risks

Central Government Finances
Local Government Finances
National Debt
Distinguishing National Debt from Public Sector Debt

III. A Public Choice Analysis of Government Debt Growth

Rent-Seeking by Special Interest Groups
Pork-Barrel Budget Spending
Exemptions from Preliminary Feasibility Studies for National Projects and Rent-Seeking
Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers Exceeding Socially Optimal Levels
Weaknesses in Government Budget Allocation
Fiscal Illusion and the Shifting of Public Debt Burdens
Voters` Rational Ignorance and Public Debt

IV. The Adequacy of Public Debt and the National Fiscal Outlook

Problems with Rising Public Debt
The Optimal Level of Public Debt
Assessment and Outlook of Public Debt Based on International Standards

V. Conclusion

References