Abstract
The effect of the allocation of government spending on the economy is currently a subject of interest given the fiscal budget constraints facing governments due to fiscal crises or adjustments. This paper thus seeks to study the effects of the allocation of government spending on the GDP behavior of Brazilian states from 1995 to 2011. Using a conventional FE (Fixed Effect) panel data model, this paper’s main results are as follows: (i) administration and planning, (ii) judicial, (iii) housing and (iv) social assistance spending were found to be productive, while (i) education and culture and (ii) legislative spending were found to be unproductive. In addition, some evidence has been found that the introduction of public borrowing rules by the Fiscal Responsibility Law has been beneficial to the economic growth of Brazilian states.
Keywords:
government spending; economic growth; Brazilian states.