Public Budgeting System, Assessment Example

Public finance expert differ in their views of the role of government in a capitalist political economy, the goals that government should pursue, and the means that should be used to reach these goals. They also disagree on such matters as the functioning of the economic system and the relationship between government and the private economy, what it is and what it should be. Discuss the main ideas of the different views we studied in this course on the role government, the market and take a position.

Tax is among the most common payables of individuals living in a particular community. It is most often than not noted as a legal obligation that each person should adhere to. From the very basic commodities that humans purchase in the market, to the most critical points of financial responsibilities they have towards the government, taxation is present. This is the reason why there are instances when the matter of spending such sources of national profit becomes subjected under public scrutiny. It is of course the right of the people to know where their money is being spent on. The government owes the public the responsibility to report how they manage the nation’s financial resources, especially the percentage that comes directly from the hard-earned money of the people.

The question on how such resources should be utilized accordingly is usually stipulated within legal sanctions that could be identified through three specific categories of management used in the field of public finance. (One) is through the efficient allocation of resources; whereas the government seeks information or data that would identify well with what the society needs the most and how such needs could be responded to. (Two) is through the distribution of income, which involves the distinct manner by which the government assures to give each individual the chance to earn for his own and gain ample source of money to support himself and those others who depend on him. (Three) is through the assumption of macroeconomic stabilization where the rate of demand and supply are balanced accordingly to make sure that the flow of money within the national economic system would be able to sustain the society’s overall needs.

Considerably, when public and private organizations in the industry are not following the same path towards providing the public with what they need and what they deserve from the system, it is considered a state of market failure. When such things happen, the allocation of goods fail and at times, the existence of informational advantages follows through; in a way, such situations often lead to overall government failure. Hence, to make sure that the government procedures taken into account to protect the economy and the ways by which it is managed is dedicated to determining public benefits on each project, it is essential to create bridges in the market that would determine the surety of how the public’s needs are given attention to. Through market control, the government would be able to ensure the people that their needs are to responded to and their money would be used accordingly with full respect to its value and worth in the assumption of social development.

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each of the budgeting methods/formats presented in the subject class. Since performance-based budgeting has received special attention at the local, state and national levels, your essay should place particular emphasis on PBB in terms of its contributions and limitations to public budgeting and finance.  Assume also that you were requested by the board of visitors of old Dominion University or another organization of approximately similar organizational complexity, to recommend a budgeting format to be used by administrators. Which format(s) would you recommend? Why?

Utilizing monetary resources effectively is a very important aspect of good governance. It could not be denied that it is through this particular procedure that needs are determined in parallel with the resources available for utilization. It could be understood that somehow, the way an agency manages he monetary resources they have would determine the kind of attention they would be getting from the public they hope to serve. Monetary wastage is a common condition in most governments at present. Not being able to prioritize particular projects that need immediate attention makes it harder for governments to control the situation accordingly. Hence, one of the most effective ways of determining efficient use of monetary resources is through the performance-based budgeting or PBB.

PBB is basically a process of developing budget schedules that would determine the best way to use financial resources with the aim of lessening the possibility of wasting any of the available elements for progress. For a particular organization to operate under this approach to monetary management, it is essential that basic information about public needs be gathered. Cost-efficiency is the most common and most important aspect of the process. For instance, for an organization like the Old Dominion University, it is important to put attention on what the organization values and prioritizes. Considerably, being a university, the desire to extend the way they reach out towards providing the students with the education they need is an essential part of their social function. With education in focal concern, applying the concept of PBB in the assumption of developing the services that the organization gives to the general public is considered to be a strong foundation that identifies well on how the administrators should allocate their current resources on the projects they may want to pursue.

References

Aristovnik, Aleksander & Seljak, Janko, 2009. “Performance budgeting: selected international experiences and some lessons for Slovenia,” MPRA Paper 15499, University Library of Munich, Germany.

Musgrave, Richard A. and Alan T. Peacock, ed. ([1958] 1994). Classics in the Theory of Public Finance, Palgrave Macmillan

Robinson, Marc (ed.), Performance Budgeting, Linking Funding and Results – Palgrave Macmillan,