The Role of Beliefs for the Sustainability of the Fiscal Constitution

Why does the government not defect from the constitution? This article focuses on the dynamic restraints the government faces under the rule of law: violations against unconstitutional laws are not punished under the constitution. If a violating government cannot commit itself never to reinstall the constitution enforcing an unconstitutional law becomes difficult. Citizens? expectations to go unpunished when not complying may be self-fulfilling. Deriving the equilibrium of a global game we show that this mechanism is effectively deterring a government from defecting from a constitutionally permissible tax rate. --tax evasion,global games,selffulfilling expectations,dynamic policy restraints

The Role of Beliefs for the Sustainability of the Fiscal Constitution

Why does the government not defect from the constitution? This article focuses on the dynamic restraints the government faces under the rule of law: violations against unconstitutional laws are not punished under the constitution. If a violating government cannot commit itself never to reinstall the constitution enforcing an unconstitutional law becomes difficult. Citizens? expectations to go unpunished when not complying may be self-fulfilling. Deriving the equilibrium of a global game we show that this mechanism is effectively deterring a government from defecting from a constitutionally permissible tax rate

Finanzverfassung und Staatsgewalt in der Demokratie: Ein Beitrag zur konstitutionellen Finanztheorie

Die Einengung haushaltsmäßiger Spielräume durch die Finanzverfassung ist eine Möglichkeit zur Begrenzung staatlichen Verhaltens. Mit den Methoden der konstitutionellen Wirtschaftstheorie, der Informationsökonomik und des Principal-Agent-Ansatzes wird ein allgemeiner theoretischer Rahmen entwickelt, der es ermöglicht, Verfassungsregeln ökonomisch zu analysieren und dabei Anreizstrukturen und Anreizmechanismen staatlicher Bereitstellung zu berücksichtigen. Die Leistungsfähigkeit einer Finanzverfassung im allgemeinen sowie einzelner fiskalischer Restriktionen werden damit untersucht. Frühere Beurteilungen verfassungsmäßiger Einnahmen- und Ausgabenbegrenzungen werden eingeordnet und verglichen

Globalization, environmental damage and the Corona pandemic: Lessons from the crisis for economic, environmental and social policy

The rapidly expanding corona pandemic in 2020 has largely brought the world to an economic stagnation. The impact on the environment, especially on air quality, from almost suspended air traffic, idle industry and economic lockdown is enormous, but also the economic and social consequences of the crisis. This state of stagnation hardly appears to be economically and socially sustainable. However, we should ask ourselves right now what we can learn from the situation in order to question globalization, better intercept future comparable crisis situations and take the step towards more sustainable development on an ecological, economic and social basis. The paper identifies the areas of externality management to improve environmental quality, digitalization and network expansion as well as basic income as central concepts that need to be addressed in and after the crisis. Concrete concepts are suggested and discussed at the end of the paper

The counterfinancing of the net basic income in times of debt-financed relief measures during the Corona crisis

The measures taken to contain the Corona pandemic have resulted in, among other things, massive loss of earnings. Many people are therefore increasingly experiencing an income crisis in addition to the acute health crisis. Permanent existential insecurity remains for too many despite the numerous aid packages. The principle of need-based assistance and the determination of need for the provision of aid are proving to be insufficient. In the current crisis, earned incomes are affected most of all due to the measures taken. This leads to an asymmetric distribution of the crisis-induced burdens and thus to an asymmetric distribution of risks and burdens between performance-related and non-performance-related income, which exacerbates the redistribution in favor of capital income. The model of net basic income (NGE) shows one way to come to a solution of these problems in the crisis. Every adult person in Germany receives a monthly unconditional basic income of e.g. € 550 (calculated in this approach) during the crisis period. This amount is supplemented by the suspension of rent, lease, repayment and interest obligations during this period of income loss. The amount of money paid to each person is the net share of the crisis basic income. The household savings from suspending rent, lease, principal, and interest payments is the gross. After the crisis, the NGE can be raised to a full participatory BGE of € 1,200 to € 1,500 as economic momentum increases. In step with this, rental, lease and capital services are to be paid again in full contract amount

On the evidence of rebound effects in the lighting sector: Implications for promoting LED lighting

[Introduction ...] The aim of this paper is to assess the evidence of rebound effects in the lighting sector through empirical studies and derive policy implications for promoting LED lighting. In the first section energy consumption for lighting in Germany is considered to estimate the relevance of possible rebound effects. Following on from a brief definition of the term rebound, empirical studies on rebound effects in the lighting sector will be considered and analyzed. This will provide insight into the potential relevance of rebound effects in the sector under consideration and provide the opportunity to derive policy implications for promoting energy efficient LED

Libertarian paternalistic instruments fostering sustainable energy consumption: An analysis based on energy-efficient LED technology

[Introduction ...] The focus of this paper is the analysis of the extent to which the "energy efficiency gap" can be closed with the help of this new behavioral economic approach. The light-emitting diode (LED) will be the main subject of the investigation, as it is extremely energy efficient, relatively cheap, and the change to LED bulbs is technically very easy to implement for any household. In the next section, we will state the theory behind the libertarian paternalism and its justification. Afterwards, several libertarian paternalistic instruments will be introduced. Since the literature already contains a broad variety of such instruments, this paper will focus on those, who delivered robust results in experiments and can be linked with energy consumption. We conclude this paper in the final section with a summary of the main findings and a lookout for what is to come

Die Gegenfinanzierung des Netto-Grundeinkommens in Zeiten schuldenfinanzierter Hilfsmaßnahmen während der Corona-Krise

Die Maßnahmen zur Eindämmung der Corona Pandemie haben unter anderem massive Verdienstausfälle zur Folge. Viele Menschen geraten daher neben der akuten Gesundheitskrise zunehmend auch in eine Einkommenskrise. Dauerhafte existenzbedrohende Unsicherheit bleibt für zu viele trotz der zahlreichen Hilfspakete. Der Grundsatz der Bedarfsbezogenheit und dafür zu ermittelnder Bedürftigkeit für die Zurverfügungstellung von Hilfe erweist sich als dabei unzureichend. In der jetzigen Krise sind maßnahmenbedingt vor allem Erwerbseinkommen betroffen. Dies führt zu einer asymmetrischen Verteilung der kriseninduzierten Lasten und somit zu einer asymmetrischen Risiko- und Lastenverteilung zwischen leistungsbezogenen und leistungslosen Einkommen, was der Umverteilung zugunsten der Kapitalerträge verschärft Vorschub leistet. Das Modell des Netto-Grundeinkommens (NGE) zeigt eine Möglichkeit, in der Krise zu einer Lösung dieser Probleme zu kommen. Jede erwachsene Person in Deutschland erhält während der Krisenzeit ein monatliches bedingungsloses Grundeinkommen von z.B. € 550 (in diesem Ansatz gerechnet). Ergänzt wird dieser Betrag durch das Aussetzen von Miet-, Pacht-, Tilgungs- und Zinsverpflichtungen während dieses Zeitraumes des Einkommensausfalls. Der an jede Person ausgezahlte Geldbetrag ist der Netto-Anteil des Krisen- Grundeinkommens. Die Einsparungen der Haushalte durch das Aussetzen von Miet-, Pacht-, Tilgungs- und Zinszahlungen ergeben das Brutto. Nach der Krise kann das NGE mit steigender wirtschaftlicher Dynamik zu einem vollen partizipativen BGE in Höhe von € 1.200 bis € 1.500 angehoben werden. Im Gleichschritt damit sind Miet-, Pacht- und Kapitaldienste wieder in voller Vertragshöhe zu leisten

A contractarian view on homann's ethical approach: The vision of "new ordoliberalism"

Homann's method is a sophisticated theoretical model. As a result, it contains a normative foundation upon which Homann bases his endeavor, as well as numerous conclusions following his positive analysis. We propose extensions to both the normative and positive aspects of Homann's theory in this article. On a normative basis, we recommend taking into account our approach of New Ordoliberalism. In addition to the prisoner's dilemma, we consider the moral dilemma of the hawk-dove game on a positive footing. Additionally, we also present an experimental design.Die Methode Homanns ist ein ausgefeiltes theoretisches Modell. Es enthält sowohl eine normative Grundlage, auf der Homann sein Unterfangen aufbaut, als auch zahlreiche Schlussfolgerungen, die sich aus seiner positiven Analyse ergeben. In diesem Artikel entwickeln wir Erweiterungen sowohl für die normativen als auch für die positiven Aspekte von Homanns Theorie. Zum Ausbau der normativen Dimension empfehlen wir unseren Ansatz des Neuen Ordoliberalismus zu berücksichtigen. In positiver Hinsicht betrachten wir das moralische Dilemma der Gesellschaft neben der Rekonstruktion im Gefangenendilemma auch im Falke-Taube-Spiel. Weiterhin stellen wir einen Versuchsaufbau hierzu vor

Challenges for sustainable environmental policy: Influencing factors of the rebound effect in energy efficiency improvements

[Introduction ...] This paper explores the factors that influence the emergence and extent of rebound effects and the challenges that arise for a sustainable environmental policy. The focus here is on increasing energy efficiency and the energy consumption decisions on the consumer side. The starting point of this investigation is the concept of the rebound effect, whose definition is based on the most common classification in the much-cited works by Greening et. al. (2000) and Berkhout et. al. (2000). Based on this, the main part of this paper is dedicated to the different factors influencing the rebound effect. The last section addresses the challenges arising for an environmental policy to promote energy efficiency