ADVANCED PUBLIC FINANCE

The course is among those characterizing the Master's Degree Programme in MANAGEMENT—ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE. The course studies what role the government plays and should play in the economy, especially those policies that work through taxes and government spending, with a particular focus on the design of tax systems. The goal is to provide an understanding of the reasons for government intervention in the economy, analyzing the benefits of possible government policies, and the response of economic agents to the government's actions. The course covers topics such as tax and welfare policy, income taxation, corporate taxation, tax enforcement, tax incidence, public goods, and externalities.

Expected learning outcomes
1. Knowledge and comprehension skills:
1.1. understanding problems and challenges in the design of tax systems in modern market economies;
1.2. understanding the combined effects of taxes and subsidies on the choices of taxpayers and enterprises;
1.3. understanding the techniques and the economic effects of taxes on corporations' production and investment choices;

2. Applied knowledge and comprehension skills:
2.1. using statistical indicators at national and international level to evaluate the characteristics of tax systems;
2.2. calculating the convenience of taxpayers to participate in the labor market, also with a gender perspective, in the presence of a variety of taxes and subsidies;
2.3. determining the corporations' convenience to finance themselves with various instruments in the presence of corporate taxes, with particular reference to the integration with taxes on personal income of shareholders;

3. Use of independent judgment:
3.1. to critically interpret the choices of the tax legislator;
3.2. to understand the impact of tax systems and individual taxes on the economic choices of companies;
3.3. to consider economic issues through analytical methods.

The course requires knowledge of the topics covered in a bachelor's degree in Public economics. Knowledge of econometrics is preferred.

The course will cover the following topics and maybe subject to change as we progress through the material.
1. Taxes, Transfers, and Inequality
2. Tax Incidence
3. Optimal Labor Income Taxation
4. Labor Income Taxes and Transfers
5. Corporate Taxation
6. Capital Income Taxation
7. Public Goods and Externalities
8. Cost-Benefit Analysis

There is no required textbook for this course. To supplement their understanding of the course material students may use the suggested textbook below for reference.
• Gruber, Jonathan. Public Finance and Public Policy. Worth Publishers, 5th Edition.
• Mirrlees, J. "Tax by Design: The Mirrlees Review." Institute for Fiscal Studies/Oxford University Press (2011).

Lecture slides will be available online on Moodle

The assessment arrangement for this course is a written, in-person, and closed-book examination. In the exam, students will be asked to answer questions on the topics covered in the course. It is going to last approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. More detailed instructions about this will be given during the lectures and provided on Moodle.
Questions can be:
- theoretical
- analytical exercises
- numerical exercises
- multiple choice questions
- charts and tables to be commented.

The course is organized in:
a) lectures,
b) individual study.
Students are encouraged to attend classes in an active way, reading the chapters of the book / papers before coming to class and doing the assignments (available on the Moodle platform).

Inglese

Durante le lezioni saranno inserite informazioni aggiuntive in Moodle.

scritto