A New Fiscal Rule: Should Israel “Go Swiss?”

Steven Symansky, Xavier Debrun and Natan Epstein

No 2008/087, IMF Working Papers from International Monetary Fund

Abstract: We propose a fiscal rule that fulfills a specific debt reduction objective while maintaining significant fiscal flexibility-two overarching concerns in Israel. Not unlike the Swiss "debt brake," the rule incorporates an error-correction mechanism (ECM) through which departure from the debt objective affects binding medium-run expenditure ceilings. Two variants of our ECM rule are shown to be superior to a comparable deficit rule in terms of attaining the debt objective and allowing for fiscal stabilization while supporting medium-term expenditure planning. Given its relative sophistication, a proper implementation of the ECM rule requires supportive fiscal institutions, including independent input and assessment.

Keywords: WP; expenditure rule; expenditure ceiling; expenditure growth ceiling; deficit target; Medium-run expenditure plan (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 27
Date: 2008-04-01
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (12)

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