ECN 204 Chapter 11: Chapter 11 - Fiscal policy, deficits, surpluses, and debt

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24 Apr 2011

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Chapter 11: fiscal policy, deficits, surpluses, and debt. 11. 1 fiscal policy and the ad as model. since 1945, fiscal policy has been one of the government"s main stabilization policy tools. Active if changes in government spending or taxes are at the option of the government. options: increased government spending, tax reductions, combined government spending and tax reductions, may create a budget deficit: the amount by which the expenditures of the federal government exceed its revenues in any year. options: decreased government spending: only enough to over the inflationary gdp gap, increased taxes, combines government spending decreases and tax increases, can cause budget surplus: tax revenues in excess of government spending. depends on political views about size of government. net tax revenues vary directly with gdp: taxes rise when gdp rises, and vice versa, transfer payments fall when gdp rises, and vice versa. Leads to automatic stabilization over the business cycle.

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Fiscal policy is carried out primarily by

A) the Federal government.

B) state and local governments working together.

C) state governments alone.

D) local governments alone.

Fiscal policy refers to the:

A) manipulation of government spending and taxes to stabilize domestic output, employment, and the price level.

B) manipulation of government spending and taxes to achieve greater equality in the distribution of income.

C) altering the interest rate to change aggregate demand.

D) fact that equal increases in government spending and taxation will be contractionary.

Expansionary fiscal policy is so named because it:

A) involves an expansion of the nation's money supply.

B) necessarily expands the size of government.

C) is aimed at achieving greater price stability.

D) is designed to expand real GDP.

An appropriate fiscal policy for severe demand-pull inflation is:

A) an increase in government spending.

B) depreciation of the dollar.

C) a reduction in interest rates.

D) a tax rate increase.

29. The amount by which government expenditures exceed revenues during a particular year is the:

A) public debt.

B) budget deficit.

C) full-employment.

D) GDP gap.

30. If actual GDP is greater than potential GDP, we have

A) a negative GDP gap

B) a positive GDP gap

C) minimum GDP gap

D) maximum GDP gap

31. Money functions as:

A) a store of value.

B) a unit of account.

C) a medium of exchange

D) all of the choices

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5. Fiscal policy is enacted through changes in

A. interest rates and the price level.

B. the supply of money and foreign exchange.

C. unemployment and inflation

D. taxation and government spending.

6. In an economy, the government wants to decrease aggregate demand by $48 billion at each price level to decrease real GDP and control demand-pull inflation. If the MPS is 0.25, then it could

A. increase taxes by $16 billion.

B. increase taxes by $24 billion.

C. decrease government spending by $10 billion.

D. decrease government spending by $16 billion.

7. If there is a constitutional requirement to maintain a balanced budget, then during a recession when tax revenues are shrinking, the government will have to implement

A. contractionary fiscal policy.

B. no change in fiscal policy.

C. expansionary fiscal policy.

D. countercyclical fiscal policy.

8. Most economists believe that fiscal policy is:

A. better than the monetary policy for "fine-tuning" the economy.

B. better than the monetary policy for month-to-month stabilization.

C. not as good as the monetary policy for month-to-month stabilization.

D. not very good at pushing the economy in a particular direction.

9. An increase in the legal reserve ratio

A. increases the money supply by increasing excess reserves

B. decreases the money supply by decreasing excess reserves

C. increases the money supply by decreasing excess reserves

D. decreases the money supply by increasing excess reserves

10. The discount rate is the rate of interest at which

A. Federal Reserve Banks lend to commercial banks

B. savings and loan associations lend to some builders

C. Federal Reserve Banks lend to large corporations.

D. commercial banks lend to large corporations

11. Which of the following actions by the Fed most likely increase commercial bank lending?

A. raising the reserve ratio

B. increasing the federal funds rate target

C. reducing the interest paid on excess reserves held at the Fed

D. selling bonds to commercial banks and the public

12. Assume the economy is operating at less than full employment. An expansionary monetary policy will cause interest rates to ______, which will ______ investment spending.

A. decrease; decrease

B. decrease; increase

C. increase; increase

D. increase; decrease

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1.Ceteris paribus, if the U.S. federal government reduces its budget deficit which of the following will be observed?

Answer

	a.	The aggregate demand curve will shift to the right.
	b.	The economy will always approach potential GDP.
	c.	The marginal propensity to consume will increase.
	d.	The average price level will increase.
	e.	The aggregate demand curve will shift to the left.

2. If the government wants to close a GDP gap, it can:

Answer

	a.	lower government spending on social security.
	b.	adopt contractionary fiscal policies to control inflation.
	c.	increase its budget deficit.
	d.	repay its borrowings.
	e.	raise both direct and indirect tax rates.

3. Suppose the short-run equilibrium level of income exceeds the full employment level of income and there is high inflation. Hence, the government decides to implement a fiscal policy that will act to reduce national output and price level. This can be accomplished by:

Answer

	a.	lowering average tax rates such that aggregate supply is increased.
	b.	increasing government spending such that aggregate expenditures are increased.
	c.	increasing transfer payments such that aggregate expenditures decline.
	d.	raising taxes and government spending by the same amount such that aggregate supply is decreased and aggregate demand is increased.
	e.	decreasing government spending such that aggregate demand is reduced.

4. A drop in investment spending caused by increased government budget deficits is referred to as:

Answer

	a.	the multiplier effect.
	b.	crowding out.
	c.	an expansionary gap.
	d.	the paradox of thrift.
	e.	the Ricardian equivalence.

5. Discretionary fiscal policy is best defined as:

Answer

	a.	the deliberate manipulation of the money supply to expand the economy.
	b.	the deliberate change in tax laws and government spending to change equilibrium income.
	c.	the policy action taken by the Congress to reduce the federal budget deficit.
	d.	the arbitrary fluctuation in tax laws and budget requirements.
	e.	the automatic change in certain fiscal instruments when real GDP changes.

6. Which of the following can be considered as an automatic stabilizer in the economy?

Answer

	a.	Money supply
	b.	Disposable income
	c.	Real exchange rate
	d.	Real interest rate
	e.	Unemployment insurance

7. Which of the following is true about automatic stabilizers?

Answer

	a.	When income rises, automatic stabilizers increase/boost spending.
	b.	Automatic stabilizers are a part of discretionary fiscal policy.
	c.	An automatic stabilizer is any program that responds to fluctuations in the business cycle in a way that moderates the effects of those fluctuations.
	d.	Any kind of trade policy adopted by the government will be considered as an automatic stabilizer.
	e.	The interest rate is an example of an automatic stabilizer.

8. Increased budget deficits

Answer

	a.	can cause interest rates to increase and hence decrease net exports
	b.	have no effect on net exports
	c.	can cause interest rates to decrease and hence increase net exports
	d.	never impose additional interest costs on the government

9. The Ricadian Equivalence implies that when financing additional government expenditures

Answer

	a.	there is no difference between increasing current taxes or borrowing now and increasing taxes in the future because consumption will decrease either way.
	b.	there is no difference between increasing current taxes or borrowing now and increasing taxes in the future because consumption will increase either way.
	c.	increasing borrowing is the best option
	d.	increasing current taxes is the best option

10. Assuming no effects on aggregate supply, if the government increases government spending and decreases taxes in an attempt to prevent a possible recession, aggregate demand will shift to the ____, the price level will either remain constant or ____, and the level of real GDP will ____.

Answer

	a.	right; decrease; increase
	b.	right; decrease; decrease
	c.	left; decrease; decrease
	d.	left; increase; increase
	e.	right; increase; increase

11. For a hypothetical economy, the MPS is 0.08 and the MPI is 0.17. If government spending increases by $35 and taxes increase by $35, what will be the net effect on equilibrium income?

Answer

	a.	A decrease of $35
	b.	An increase of $105
	c.	An increase of $35
	d.	A decrease of $105
	e.	A decrease of $15

12.12. The term fiscal policy refers to

Answer

	a.	the adjustment of the GDP for inflation.
	b.	the purchase and sale of U.S. government securities to regulate the money supply.
	c.	the use of government spending and taxation to influence the level of economic growth and inflation.
	d.	the use of fines to penalize unfair business practices.
	e.	a policy action by Congress to overrule unpopular budget cuts by the president.

13. If aggregate demand intersects aggregate supply in the vertical range of the aggregate supply curve, then, other things equal, an increase in government spending will

Answer

	a.	raise the price level and leave real GDP unchanged.
	b.	raise real GDP by the amount indicated by the government spending multiplier and leave the price level unchanged.
	c.	raise both real GDP and the price level by a multiple of the initial spending increase.
	d.	have no effect on real GDP or on the price level, because all private investment will be crowded out.
	e.	lower real GDP by an amount equal to the spending increase and reduce inflation.

14. Which of the following is not a means to finance government spending?

Answer

	a.	Government subsidies
	b.	Government debt
	c.	Capital gains taxes
	d.	Personal income taxes
	e.	Money creation

15. An automatic stabilizer is

Answer

	a.	a change in government spending aimed at achieving a policy goal.
	b.	an element of fiscal policy that automatically changes in value as real GDP changes.
	c.	an element of monetary policy that automatically changes in value as real GDP changes.
	d.	a decrease in tax rates as the economy moves into a recession.
	e.	a deliberate change in taxation aimed at increasing real GDP.

16. Budget deficits tend to grow during recessions because

Answer

	a.	real GDP growth is zero, which causes neither tax receipts nor government expenditures to grow.
	b.	real GDP growth is positive, which reduces both tax receipts and transfer payments.
	c.	real GDP growth is negative, which reduces transfer payments in relation to tax receipts.
	d.	real GDP growth is negative, which reduces tax receipts in relation to government expenditures.
	e.	real GDP growth is positive, which increases tax receipts in relation to government expenditures.

ECN 204 Chapter 11: Chapter 11 - Fiscal policy, deficits, surpluses, and debt

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