Curricular Unit:			Code:
Public Policies: Budgeting and Public Finance			811PPGO
Year:	Level:	Course:	Credits:
1	Master	Business Sciences	6 ects
Learning Period:		Language of Instruction:	Total Hours:
		Portuguese/English	78
Learning Outcomes of the Curricular Unit:
We will analyse the flow of policy decisions, its appearance in the form of political facts and Consititution Agenda, its formulation, implementation and evaluation. To introduce students to Public Finances providing them with a technical and financial perspective on the impacts of different degrees of government intervention in economic systems. To introduce students to different social, political and economic implications of active public finances. To understand the dynamics of public finances in Portugal and the eurozone.
Syllabus:
Part 1 - Public Policies 1. Introduction (Study of Public Policy Concepts and Theories of the Policy Process) 2. Public Policy and State Theory 3. Analysis of Public Policy 4. Actors, Institutions and Instruments 5. Theory (Political Agenda, Decision-Making, Implementation and Evaluation) 6. Political Process, Public Policy in Private (Analysis of Social Policy, Europeanization of Public Policy) Part 2 - Budget Management and Public Finances 1. The goal of Public Finances 2. From classic to modern Public Finances 3. The economic implications of active Public Finances 4. The Portuguese National Budget 5. Public Finances and the EMU rule 6. Public finances in the eurozone
Demonstration of the Syllabus Coherence with the Curricular Unit's Objectives:
Characterize the main steps in the design of Political Programs; analyze and evaluate the costs and benefits involved in the adoption of Public Policy. The course provides students with an understanding of the evolution and the relevance of the different ways to look at the public finances. It starts by explaining its object of study and identifying key budget indicators. In this context, students are introduced to measurement in national accounts, which stands at the core of budgetary and fiscal policy in modern economies, in close relationship with macroeconomic policy. The course follows with the presentation of the legal framework and the analysis of the Portuguese National Budget. The fiscal rules of the EMU and the euro zone are identified, and the Fiscal Pact is analyzed, highlighting its implications for inflation and growth.
Teaching Methodologies (Including Evaluation):
This module is divided in two parts each being assessed with a test. The first test focuses on chapters 1, 2, 3 of the program (with a weight of 50%) and the second test concerns the remaining three programmatic chapters (with an equal weight of 50%). The arithmetic average obtained in these assessment elements will dictate the student's final grade. Thus, the determination of the final grade in continuous assessment (FG) will be the result of the following expression: FG = 0.5 * Test Grade 1 + 0.5 * Test Grade 2 The absence in a assessment moment counts as a grade of 0. The student will be approved to the module if the final grade (FG) is equal to or higher than 9.5, otherwise, the student will be sent to the appeal exam season.
Demonstration of the Coherence between the Teaching Methodologies and the Learning Outcomes:
The methodology combines theoretical presentation with analysis of public finances indicators. In addition to the theoretical presentation of the contents, items 1 to 3 give more relevance to the analysis of the macroeconomic implications of public accounts. Items 4 to 6 provide information related to the framework of public finances in Portugal and the Eurozone, and give more relevance to the interpretation of budgetary balances and the sustainability of public accounts. Students are asked to solve problems throughout the course.
Reading:
Rocha, J. A. Oliveira. 2010. Gestão do Processo Político e Políticas Públicas. Lisboa: Escolar Editora. Anderson, James E. 20111. Public Policy Making 7rd ed. New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Cordeiro, Silvério. (2010). Estruturas Organizacionais Emergentes de Parcerias Público-Privadas. Lisboa: Universidade Lusíada Editora. Carvalho, J. (1999). Temas de Contabilidade Pública. Rei dos Livros, Lisboa. Ferreira, E. e Pessanha, A. (2009). Finanças Públicas, Legislação fundamental. Quid Iuris, Lisboa. Gruber, J. (2011). Public Finance and Public Policy. Worth Publishers, USA. Luís, J. (1999). POC das Autarquias Locais. Vislis Editores, Lda., Lisboa. Moreno, C. (1998). Gestão e Controlo dos Dinheiros Públicos. UAL, Lisboa. Pires, A. e Pinto (1998). Manual do Plano Oficial de Contabilidade Pública (DL nº232/97 de 3 de Setembro). Vislis Ed., Lda., Lisboa. Trigo Pereira, P. (2009). Economia e Finanças Públicas, da Teoria à Prática. Almedina, Coimbra.