This course uses the basic tools of microeconomics to analyse the role of government and the rationale for and design of taxation and  expenditure policy. Emphasis is placed on attaining a solid grasp of the basic theory of public economics. The topics to be covered include a review of basic microeconomics, welfare economics, cost-benefit analysis,  public goods,  externalities,  public choice, public expenditure programs (including education, health, pensions and welfare payments),  and taxation (including efficiency and equity issues, tax incidence, Australian tax policy, and fiscal federalism).

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Identify and explain the principal forms of market failure that provide a justification for government intervention;
2. Describe the main policy instruments used to mitigate market failures and explain the principles that guide their optimal use;
3. Explain the limitations of government intervention - for instance, illustrate how the presence of information problems both explains the forms that policy intervention take and imposes limits on what can be achieved by it.
4. Identify the trade-offs captured by public economics models; including the assumptions, relevance, and limitations of those models; including the assumptions, relevance, and limitations of those models.
5. Analyse policy problems and assess arguments appearing in the policy debate.

Research-Led Teaching

The course will cover recent research in the area of public economics. Recent papers on taxation, education, social security, among other topics, will be provided in the Course Wattle Site, often as suggested optional readings. When feasible the main findings of those papers will be discussed in class.

Examination Material or equipment

Exams will be held remotely through the Course Wattle Site and may be invigilated. Stable and reliable internet connection is necessary. A webcam is also necessary for invigilated exams.

As a further academic integrity control, students may be selected for a 15-minute individual oral examination of their written assessment submissions. Any student identified, either during the current semester or in retrospect, as having used ghost writing services will be investigated under the University’s Academic Integrity Rule.

Required Resources

The prescribed textbook is Rosen, H. and Gayer, T. (2014), Public Finance (10th edition), McGraw-Hill. This textbook is available as eBook in the ANU Library.

Recommended Resources

The recommended textbooks for Public Sector Economics are:

• Abelson, P. (2012), Public economics: principles and practice (3^rd edition), Mc-Graw Hill.
• Stiglitz, J.E. and Rosengard, J.K. (2015), The Economics of the Public Sector (4th edition), W. W. Norton.
• Note: Sydsaeter, K. and Hammond, P. (2006), Essential Mathematics for Economic Analysis, Prentice Hall (Pubs) may be useful for background mathematical techniques. Your existing microeconomics text may also be useful for background microeconomics concepts.

All textbooks will be placed on the Reserve Collection. There will be a link to the Reserve Collection in the Course Wattle Site. The latest version of Abelson's text is available online free of charge and the link will be provided in the Course Wattle Site.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• The solutions to quiz and mid-semester exam questions will be provided online and/or discussed in lectures upon release of results.
• Written comments, if relevant, will be included with the pieces of assessment returned to students.
• Verbal comments, if necessary, will be provided during consultation time.

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Other Information

Announcements

Students are expected to check the Course Wattle Site for announcements about this course.

Communication

The course email address is econ2131@anu.edu.au. The weekly email reply hour is Monday 4-5pm. The Research School of Economics discourages personal emails to lecturers (and back) regarding course instruction and administration. Emails from students not going to the course email address should go to enquiries.rse@anu.edu.au.

Workload

Students taking this course are expected to commit at least 10 hours a week to completing the work. This includes:

• 2 hours a week: lecture;
• 1 hour a week: tutorial;
• At least 7 hours a week: reading, research, writing, lecture and tutorial preparation.

Course delivery

• The Pass component of Public Sector Economics (ECON2131) consists of a two-hour lecture (dual delivery, recorded), starting week 1, and a one-hour tutorial (either face-to-face or online, not recorded) per week, starting week 2. For more detailed information, see participation section above.
• The Honours/Graduate version of Public Sector Economics (ECON4434 for 4th year Honours and ECON8034 for Graduates) consists of the activities indicated above, to cover common material with ECON2131, and an additional one-hour interactive workshop (dual delivery, recorded) to cover specific Honours/Graduate material.

Recommended readings

A table including recommended readings for each topic will be provided in the Course Wattle Site.

Other relevant information

• Handouts, in the form of brief PowerPoint presentations, will be provided before the lecture. Occasionally, more detailed documents will be provided for topics for which this is deemed necessary. All these documents will be available in the Course Wattle Site.
• Students should note that the PowerPoint handouts are to be regarded as a guide to the referenced material. Recommended readings are included in the table mentioned above and in the last page of each handout. Students should regularly consult these references.
• Tutorial answers are not posted in Wattle. Tutorial questions are provided for practice and are to be attempted before the tutorial. We do not expect that students will be able to solve all questions beforehand but the attempt may raise particular queries/doubts that can be discussed during the tutorial. If after the tutorial a student still has follow-up queries/doubts, the student is welcome to clarify them during consultation or, if the student believes that it is a question that would benefit the full class, the student is welcome to post the question in the Question Forum in the Course Wattle Site. 
• All quizzes and exams will be run using the Wattle Quiz tool. A practice Wattle Quiz will be made available to students in week 3, before Assessment Task 1, to enable students to practice how to answer different types of questions (e.g. multiple choice, numerical/calculation, Cloze (embedded multiple choice and numerical answers), and essay type questions), how to navigate sequentially and how to upload scanned answers for the essay type questions. Note that parts of the answer to essay type questions may be typed into a text field but other parts of the answer to essay type questions (graphs, computations, etc.) may need to be handwritten and uploaded. Additional time will be allocated for uploads in the assessment tasks that include essay type questions.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Lecture 1 - Topic 1: The public sector in a mixed economy
2	Lecture 2 -Topic 2: The economic rationale of government; Tutorial 1
3	Lecture 3 -Topic 3: Welfare economics: efficiency and equity; Tutorial 2	Practice Wattle Quiz available
4	Lecture 4 - Topic 4: Cost-benefit analysis; Tutorial 3	Quiz 1 due [See assessment tasks]
5	Lecture 5 - Topic 5: Public goods and publicly provided private goods; Tutorial 4
6	Lecture 6 - Topic 6: Externalities; Tutorial 5	Mid-semester exam in either week 6 or week 7 [Check official mid-semester examination timetable for precise date when released later in the semester]
7	Lecture 7 -Topic 7: Education and health care; Tutorial 6	Mid-semester exam in either week 6 or week 7 [Check official mid-semester examination timetable for precise date when released later in the semester]
8	Lecture 8 - Topic 8: Social security and welfare programs; Tutorial 7
9	Lecture 9 - Topic 9: Introduction to taxation and tax incidence; Tutorial 8	Quiz 2 due [See assessment tasks]
10	Lecture 10 - Topic 10: Taxation and economic efficiency; Tutorial 9
11	Lecture 11 - Topic 11: Optimal taxation; Tutorial 10	Quiz 3 due [See assessment tasks]
12	Lecture 12 - Topic 12: Fiscal federalism; Tutorial 11

Tutorial Registration

There will be separate face-to-face and online one-hour tutorials each week, starting teaching week 2. Each student will need to register in one tutorial group. ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities/tutorials so they can better plan their time and easily access a personal timetable. MyTimetable opens to students for allocations on 6th February 2023. Find out more on the MyTimetable webpage.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Quiz 1	5 %	14/03/2023	28/03/2023	1,2
Mid-semester exam	30 %	*	*	1,2,3,4
Quiz 2	5 %	01/05/2023	15/05/2023	1,2,3,4
Quiz 3	5 %	15/05/2023	29/05/2023	1,2,3,4,5
Final exam	55 %	*	*	1,2,3,4,5

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

There are no marks allocated for attendance but participation in lectures and tutorials, while not compulsory, is expected in line with Code of Practice for Teaching and Learning 2(b).

• Lectures will be delivered on campus and online live in a Dual Delivery enabled teaching room. Lecture recordings will be made available in ECHO360 (See ANU timetable for details on day, time and location). Lectures start in week 1. It is expected that students attend lectures whenever possible and come prepared to them. The handouts and other relevant information for each lecture will be available before each lecture in the Course Wattle Site. For those students unable to attend lectures it is expected that they engage with the lecture recordings and other material provided online on a weekly basis.
• Tutorials will be offered both face-to-face and online (See tutorial registration information above). Tutorial meetings start in week 2. Tutorials are discussion-based classes. It is expected that students prepare for tutorials in advance and come ready to answer questions about the problems assigned for each week's tutorial. Students who, through unavoidable and unplanned occurrences, are unable to attend a tutorial class one week are encouraged to work through the problems and attend a consultation session to check their answers and discuss any remaining doubts. More detailed information about tutors and tutorials will be available in the Course Wattle Site.

Examination(s)

See assessment tasks 2 and 5.

Assessment Task 1

Quiz 1

There will be 3 online quizzes throughout the semester. They are compulsory and non-redeemable. The quizzes will test knowledge covered in the preceding weeks' lectures and tutorials. The precise topics covered in each quiz will be announced in the Course Wattle Site one week before the quiz. Each quiz will count 5% of your final grade. The questions will be a mix of multiple choice, numerical/calculation and essay-type questions. The number of questions in each quiz will depend on the particular mix but there will be no more than 10 questions to answer. The quizzes will be available Friday 11am of weeks 3, 7 and 10, and will be open until Monday 11am of the following week (Tuesday 11am when Monday is a public holiday). However, once started each student will only have 1 hour to complete the quiz, can only attempt the quiz once and cannot go backwards through the questions. There will be instructions at the beginning of each quiz – students should make sure to read them thoroughly before commencing. If a student misses a quiz for a legitimate reason, documentation will need to be provided to the course email address, and the remaining quizzes will be re-weighted. No late submissions are accepted. Quiz answers will be provided online and/or discussed in lectures upon release of quiz results. 

All quizzes and exams will be run using the Wattle Quiz tool. A practice Wattle Quiz will be made available to students in week 3, before Assessment Task 1, to enable students to practice how to answer different types of questions (e.g. multiple choice, numerical/calculation, Cloze (embedded multiple choice and numerical answers), and essay type questions), how to navigate sequentially and how to upload scanned answers for the essay type questions. Note that parts of the answer to essay type questions may be typed into a text field but other parts of the answer to essay type questions (graphs, computations, etc.) may need to be handwritten and uploaded. Additional time will be allocated for uploads in the assessment tasks that include essay type questions.

Assessment Task 2

Mid-semester exam

A mid-semester exam will be held during the ANU mid-semester exam period (week 6 or week 7). The exam will be delivered online via the Course Wattle Site, use the Wattle Quiz tool and may be invigilated. The mid-semester exam is compulsory and non-redeemable, will consist of a mix of multiple choice, numerical/calculation and essay type questions to be answered in 90 minutes and will count 30% of the final grade. The mid-semester exam will cover topics 1-4. Final details and submission information will be provided no later than week 4 in the Course Wattle Site. The precise date will be announced in the official mid-semester examination timetable. Students are expected to check the Course Wattle Site regularly for announcements. Mid-semester exam answers will be provided online and/or discussed in lectures upon release of mid-semester exam results.

Assessment Task 3

Quiz 2

There will be 3 online quizzes throughout the semester. They are compulsory and non-redeemable. The quizzes will test knowledge covered in the preceding weeks' lectures and tutorials. The precise topics covered in each quiz will be announced in the Course Wattle Site one week before the quiz. Each quiz will count 5% of your final grade. The questions will be a mix of multiple choice, numerical/calculation and essay-type questions. The number of questions in each quiz will depend on the particular mix but there will be no more than 10 questions to answer. The quizzes will be available Friday 11am of weeks 3, 7 and 10, and will be open until Monday 11am of the following week (Tuesday 11am when Monday is a public holiday). However, once started each student will only have 1 hour to complete the quiz, can only attempt the quiz once and cannot go backwards through the questions. There will be instructions at the beginning of each quiz – students should make sure to read them thoroughly before commencing. If a student misses a quiz for a legitimate reason, documentation will need to be provided to the course email address, and the remaining quizzes will be re-weighted. No late submissions are accepted. Quiz answers will be provided online and/or discussed in lectures upon release of quiz results. 

Assessment Task 4

Quiz 3

There will be 3 online quizzes throughout the semester. They are compulsory and non-redeemable. The quizzes will test knowledge covered in the preceding weeks' lectures and tutorials. The precise topics covered in each quiz will be announced in the Course Wattle Site one week before the quiz. Each quiz will count 5% of your final grade. The questions will be a mix of multiple choice, numerical/calculation and essay-type questions. The number of questions in each quiz will depend on the particular mix but there will be no more than 10 questions to answer. The quizzes will be available Friday 11am of weeks 3, 7 and 10, and will be open until Monday 11am of the following week (Tuesday 11am when Monday is a public holiday). However, once started each student will only have 1 hour to complete the quiz, can only attempt the quiz once and cannot go backwards through the questions. There will be instructions at the beginning of each quiz – students should make sure to read them thoroughly before commencing. If a student misses a quiz for a legitimate reason, documentation will need to be provided to the course email address, and the remaining quizzes will be re-weighted. No late submissions are accepted. Quiz answers will be provided online and/or discussed in lectures upon release of quiz results. 

Assessment Task 5

Final exam

A final exam will be held during the ANU final exam period. The exam will be delivered online via the Course Wattle Site, use the Wattle Quiz tool and may be invigilated. The final exam is compulsory and non-redeemable, will consist of a mix of multiple choice, numerical/calculation and essay type questions to be answered in 150 minutes and will count 55% of the final grade. The final exam will primarily cover topics 5-12, but material from Topics 1-4 may also be included. Final details and submission information will be provided no later than week 10 in the Course Wattle Site. The precise date will be announced in the official final examination timetable. Students are expected to check the Course Wattle Site regularly for announcements.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Late submission is not permitted. If an assessment task is submitted after the due date without a granted extension, a mark of 0 will be awarded.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Returning Assignments

The original submitted assignment, and any relevant feedback comments, will be made available in the Course Wattle Site as soon as the assignments are marked and the marks are released, no later than 2 weeks after the assignment is due. An announcement will be made in the Course Wattle Site.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Resubmission of Assignments

Resubmission of assignments is not permitted.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students