Published Nov 28, 2022
This course examines the scope and level of government involvement in economic activity. The main focus is on historical trends and recent developments in the extent and composition of government spending, taxation, and regulation in developed nations. A secondary focus is to introduce the current policy debates in these areas.
Prereq: ECON 101 or ECON 100/COMM 103; ECON 102
| Apply elements of microeconomic theory to understand how consumers and producers make rational decisions. |
| Explain the fundamental features of public goods, externalities, and information asymmetry. |
| Apply theoretical understanding to problems of social welfare maximization. |
| Apply a theoretical understanding to a variety of policy issues. |
| Explain the need for government intervention under certain market conditions. |
| Use applied economic techniques to analyze conceptual problems in a social insurance context. |
DATE | SLIDES | VIDEO | TOPICS |
Jan. 9 - 15 | WEEK 1 | WEEK 1 | CS, PS, and Total Welfare with Applications |
Jan. 16 - 22 | WEEK 2 | WEEK 2 | Consumer Theory (WARP), Indifference Curves, and Budgets Suggested Readings: Chapter 1 (Rosen). |
Jan. 23 - 29 | WEEK 3 | WEEK 3 | Consumer Equilibrium, General Equilibrium: Walras and Pareto |
Jan. 30 – Feb. 5 | WEEK 4 | WEEK 4 | General Equilibrium: Edgeworth Box and Pareto Production, Social Welfare Functions |
Feb. 6 - 12 | WEEK 5 | WEEK 5 | Consumer Theory – Welfare Theorems, Welfare Measures (EV & CV). Suggested Readings: Chapter 2 (Rosen). |
Feb. 13 – 19 | WEEK 6 | WEEK 6 | Information Economics, Economic Justice and Redistribution, Public Goods. Suggested Readings: Chapter 5 and 6 (Rosen). |
Feb. 15 | - | - | ONLINE QUIZ #1 (15%) |
Feb. 20 – 26 | - | - | READING WEEK |
Feb. 27 - Mar. 5 | WEEK 7 | WEEK 7 | Public Goods, Externalities, Private Responses, and Institutional Constraints |
Feb. 28 | - | - | ASSIGNMENT #1 DUE (20%) |
Mar. 6 – 12 | WEEK 8 | WEEK 8 | Theory of Second Best, Income Redistribution, Food Stamps |
Mar. 13 – 19 | WEEK 9 | WEEK 9 | Public Choice, Arrow’s Impossibility Theorem, and Representative Democracy, Fiscal Federalism and Community Formation. Suggested Readings: Chapter 7, 8, and 9 (Rosen). |
Mar. 19 - 26 | WEEK 10 | WEEK 10 | Health Care in Canada. |
Mar. 27 – Apr. 2 | WEEK 11 | WEEK 11 | Employment Insurance. Suggested Readings: Chapter 10 (Rosen) |
Mar. 31 | - |
| ONLINE QUIZ #2 (15%) |
Apr. 3 – 9 | WEEK 12 | WEEK 12 | Employment Insurance as a Redistributive Tool. |
Apr. 3 | - |
| ASSIGNMENT #2 DUE (20%) |
Apr. 10 | - |
| TERM PAPER DUE (30%) |
This class schedule is ambitious. Additions, modifications and/or eliminations of certain content might be required given our limited time together. Any necessary modifications to the course content will be communicated to you in an online announcement.
| Title / Name | Notes / Comments | Required |
|---|---|---|
| Public Finance in Canada, 5th Canadian edition | No | |
| Access to Excel | Yes |
COURSE NOTES
I will be posting complete lecture notes on LEARN at the beginning of the term. These notes are intended to highlight key learning objectives and will include all of the testable course material. I will also provide a video lecture on the relevant material each week.
Recommended Textbook (i.e., not STRICTLY required)
Rosen, Harvey S., Jean-Francois Wen, and Tracy Snodden, Public Finance in Canada, 5th Canadian edition, McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 2012.
Examinations and assignments in this course are based on the material presented in online lectures and contained in the course notes.
| Component | Value |
|---|---|
| See below | |
The two individual assignments in this course will each be worth 20% of your final grade. The two online quizzes will be written on the dates specified below and the results will be worth 15% of your final grade for each quiz. The Term Paper will constitute 30% of your final grade.
The course grade will be based on the weighted sum of the two assignments, the two online quizzes, and the Term Paper. The breakdown is as follows:
| Assessment | Date of Evaluation | Weighting |
| Online Quiz #1 | February 15 | 15% |
| Online Quiz #2 | March 31 | 15% |
| Assignment #1 | due on February 28 | 20% |
| Assignment #2 | due on April 3 | 20% |
| Term Paper | due on April 10 | 30% |
| Total | 100% |
Notes
This grading scheme will be implemented strictly for all students in the course (with the exception of verified illnesses).
Text matching software (Turnitin) will be used to screen assignments in this course. This is being done to verify that use of all material and sources in assignments is documented. In the first week of the term, details will be provided about the arrangements for the use of Turnitin and alternatives in this course. See Administrative Policy below for more information and links.
Policy on Missed/Late Assignments and Tests
Any assignment that is not submitted by the date and time at which this assignment is due will be penalized at a rate of 10% per day (up to a maximum of 5 days). If the assignment is more than 5 days late, then it will receive a grade of zero.
Any Term Paper that is submitted after the due date will be penalized at a rate of 10% per day (up to a maximum of 5 days). If the Term Paper is more than 5 days late, then it will receive a grade of zero.
No make-up attempts will be provided for the quizzes. Students who miss a quiz and do not have a relevant medical certificate will receive a mark of zero. Students with a valid medical certificate will have the weight of the relevant quiz added to their term paper weighting.
Students should be aware that this course contains the intellectual property of their instructor, TA, and/or the University of Waterloo.
Intellectual property includes items such as:
Course materials and the intellectual property contained therein, are used to enhance a student’s educational experience. However, sharing this intellectual property without the intellectual property owner’s permission is a violation of intellectual property rights. For this reason, it is necessary to ask the instructor, TA and/or the University of Waterloo for permission before uploading and sharing the intellectual property of others online (e.g., to an online repository).
Permission from an instructor, TA or the University is also necessary before sharing the intellectual property of others from completed courses with students taking the same/similar courses in subsequent terms/years. In many cases, instructors might be happy to allow distribution of certain materials. However, doing so without expressed permission is considered a violation of intellectual property rights.
Please alert the instructor if you become aware of intellectual property belonging to others (past or present) circulating, either through the student body or online. The intellectual property rights owner deserves to know (and may have already given their consent).
All deferred Final Exam requests for economics courses are administered by the Economics Undergraduate Office. Please consult the Deferred Exam Policy at
https://uwaterloo.ca/economics/undergraduate/resources-and-policies/deferred-final-exam-policy.
Policy 33, Ethical Behaviour states, as one of its general principles (Section 1), “The University supports academic freedom for all members of the University community. Academic freedom carries with it the duty to use that freedom in a manner consistent with the scholarly obligation to base teaching and research on an honest and ethical quest for knowledge. In the context of this policy, 'academic freedom' refers to academic activities, including teaching and scholarship, as is articulated in the principles set out in the Memorandum of Agreement between the FAUW and the University of Waterloo, 1998 (Article 6). The academic environment which fosters free debate may from time to time include the presentation or discussion of unpopular opinions or controversial material. Such material shall be dealt with as openly, respectfully and sensitively as possible.” This definition is repeated in Policies 70 and 71, and in the Memorandum of Agreement, Section 6
All of us need a support system. The faculty and staff in Arts encourage students to seek out mental health support if they are needed.
On Campus
Due to COVID-19 and campus closures, services are available only online or by phone.
Off campus, 24/7
Full details can be found online on the Faculty of Arts website
Download UWaterloo and regional mental health resources (PDF)
Download the WatSafe app to your phone to quickly access mental health support information.
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For more information about the purpose of territorial acknowledgements, please see the CAUT Guide to Acknowledging Traditional Territory.
Academic integrity: In order to maintain a culture of academic integrity, members of the University of Waterloo community are expected to promote honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility. [Check the Office of Academic Integrity for more information.]
Grievance: A student who believes that a decision affecting some aspect of their university life has been unfair or unreasonable may have grounds for initiating a grievance. Read Policy 70, Student Petitions and Grievances, Section 4. When in doubt, please be certain to contact the department’s administrative assistant who will provide further assistance.
Discipline: A student is expected to know what constitutes academic integrity to avoid committing an academic offence, and to take responsibility for their actions. [Check the Office of Academic Integrity for more information.] A student who is unsure whether an action constitutes an offence, or who needs help in learning how to avoid offences (e.g., plagiarism, cheating) or about “rules” for group work/collaboration should seek guidance from the course instructor, academic advisor, or the undergraduate associate dean. For information on categories of offences and types of penalties, students should refer to Policy 71, Student Discipline. For typical penalties, check Guidelines for the Assessment of Penalties.
Appeals: A decision made or penalty imposed under Policy 70, Student Petitions and Grievances (other than a petition) or Policy 71, Student Discipline may be appealed if there is a ground. A student who believes they have a ground for an appeal should refer to Policy 72, Student Appeals.
Note for students with disabilities: AccessAbility Services, located in Needles Hall, Room 1401, collaborates with all academic departments to arrange appropriate accommodations for students with disabilities without compromising the academic integrity of the curriculum. If you require academic accommodations to lessen the impact of your disability, please register with AccessAbility Services at the beginning of each academic term.
Turnitin.com: Text matching software (Turnitin®) may be used to screen assignments in this course. Turnitin® is used to verify that all materials and sources in assignments are documented. Students' submissions are stored on a U.S. server, therefore students must be given an alternative (e.g., scaffolded assignment or annotated bibliography), if they are concerned about their privacy and/or security. Students will be given due notice, in the first week of the term and/or at the time assignment details are provided, about arrangements and alternatives for the use of Turnitin in this course.
It is the responsibility of the student to notify the instructor if they, in the first week of term or at the time assignment details are provided, wish to submit alternate assignment.