Reference no: EM132215433

Answer the question from the book ( pdf reading ) at least 6 sentence for each question . one page total

Question 1

Governmental budgets are never simple and this has been proven throughout history. Having taxes is crucial for a government, especially to be able to provide services and have a defense, Therefore, taxes are inevitable. According to Greene, "the three major methods of taxation impose taxes on income, wealth, and consumption" (pg. 258).

Income taxes are progressive, meaning if a person makes more, then that person must pay more. Apart from income taxes, states also can tax corporate income. Like mentioned by Greene, "corporate income taxes are controversial because they are considered to be a double tax" (pg. 259).

In my opinion, corporate income taxes are very beneficial to the government, but corporate taxes shouldn't be too high. If corporate taxes are too high, business would most likely move overseas and unemployment rates would be high.

Do you think corporate income taxes are unfair? What is your opinion on income taxes and/or corporate income taxes?

Question 2

In the reading "An Overview of Public Budgeting" it addresses the many different budget formats government may have (251-254).

The first format is called Line Item Budget. This format gives the most control, because each agency needs to specify the funds they receive. This format gives the decision makers the ability to know how much money is being allocated to each category.

The second format is called Planning-Programming-Budgeting Systems (PPBS). This format was brought about because government wanted more efficiency in the government, so in the 1950's government passed a law named The Budget and Accounting procedures Act. This led to the Planning-Programming-Budgeting Systems, which is setting objectives for agencies and then set a budget, which the decision makers believed would help the agencies achieve the set objectives.

The third format would be the Zero-Based Budget. This budget is quite simple, the agencies must justify their budgets each year by starting with a "blank sheet."

The final format is Capital Budgets. This format puts assets in two different categories. The first one is long term assets and the second is short term assets, they both have separate budgets. The long term assets are things that will be used over a long period of time. For example, building a school or building a water system in a city.

Long term projects are usually funded through the sale of bonds. The short term assets, which last around a year would run on a operating budget. The things that would be included in the list for short term assets would be things used in a school for example, such as ink cartridges, pencils, and paper.

Questions: The budget format which the government uses can have a huge impact on the efficiency of government, which of the four budget formats do you believe makes government more efficient? Why?

In the Zero-Based Budget it states that agencies must justify their budgets each year by starting with a "blank sheet." What are some negatives and positives of such a budget?