the logic of the budget process

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1、CHAPTER2TheLogicoftheBudgetProcessThebudgetprocessprovidesthemediumfordeterminingwhatgovernmentserviceswillbeprovidedandhowtheywillbefinanced.Itmayalsohelpestablishhowtheserviceswillbeprovided.Thebasicbudgetingproblem,simplystated,isthefol-lowing:“Onwhatbasisshallitbedecidedtoallocate

2、XdollarstoactivityAinstead1ofactivityB?”Thatisaprettysimple-soundingquestionbut,likemanythingsinlife,itsapplicationiswheretheproblemslurk.Howmanydollarsshouldbemovedfromprivatebusinessesandindividualstogovernmentand,oncemovedtogovern-ment,howmuchshouldgotoeachgovernmentactivity?Indeed

3、,theanswerisremarkablyclear:movemoneyfromprivatetopublicuseandamongalternativepublicusesuntilitisnotpossibletomoveonedollarfromoneusetoanotherwith-outlosingasmuchfromwhereyoutookitasyougainfromwhereyouputit.It’snotabigdealconceptually.Thereisnolackoftheoreticalguidanceastohowthingssho

4、uldwork.Marketsforprivategoodsdotheallocationinvisibly,aspricesandprof-itsprovidetheresourceallocationsignalsandprivatebusinessesandindividualstakeitfromthere.Butmarketsdon’tworkforpublicgoods,thehometurfofgovern-ments,soherecomethelawmakerstodotheallocationjobthatmarketscan’t.Theymay

5、bunglethejob(inademocracy,weelectedthem,soitisultimatelyourfault),butthebudgetprocessiswherethosechoicesgetmadeforgovernmentoperations,notsoquietlyandwehopenotsoinvisibly,butdefinitelypolitically.Whengovernmentstaxandspend,makingdecisionswithintheframeworkofthebudgetprocess,theyaredoi

6、ngforthepublicsectorwhattheprivatemarketdoesforthepro-visionofprivategoodsandservices.Theyaredecidinghowbiggovernmentwillberelativetotheprivatesectorand,withingovernment,therelativesizeofthevariousprogramsandagenciesthatthegovernmentprovides.Theyevenmakedecisionsabouthowprogramsandage

7、ncieswilloperate.Eachgovernmenthassomemethod1V.O.Key,Jr.,“TheLackofaBudgetaryTheory,”AmericanPoliticalScienceReview34(December1940):1137.Thesentencesafterthisquotationinthistextdooutlineaprecisebudgetarytheory.Asitturnsout,thetitleiswrongbecausetherehasbeennoabsenceofabudgetarytheoryf

8、orman