Based on extensive primary source analysis and in-depth
interviews with key figures in the field of public debt
administration and policy development, this volume presents a
comprehensive history of the U.S. public debt from 1775--when the
first debt was incurred to finance the Revolutionary War--to the
present. The authors document how the public debt has accumulated
and review the methods the government has employed to manage and
administer it. They describe the impact of wars, depressions, and
macroeconomic policy on the growth of the debt and detail how the
handling of the debt was linked to the evolution of the banking
system. Their goal throughout is to put the current debt situation
into historical perspective, providing an objective evaluation of
both the current levels of debt growth and the effectiveness of
debt management policies and administration.
Following an introductory chapter, the study is arranged
chronologically and begins with three chapters which describe the
management of the public debt through 1900--a period during which
the public debt was relatively small and its management simple. The
debt was small, the authors show, because prevailing attitudes
toward public finance fostered a fiscal system that relied on
balanced budgets, except in wartime. The remaining chapters focus
on twentieth century debt growth, administration, and management. A
shift in policy away from balanced budgets and a public attitude of
less concern about payment of the public debt have made federal
budget deficits the norm, the authors demonstrate, and such running
deficits require complex debt administration measures. The
evolution of the system of debt management and administration that
is coordinated by the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve, and
the Bureau of Public Debt is a major focus of these chapters.
Challenging the views of many analysts and observers, the authors
conclude that the recent growth of the public debt is no greater
than that which has occurred in other periods, and that government
policies of debt management and administration have been effective
and timely and have made good use of modern technology. An
important contribution to the literature of economic history, this
book will also be of significant interest to scholars in economic
policy, economic theory, and public policy.
General
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