Pay-as-you-go or funded social security? A general equilibrium comparison

B-Tier
Journal: Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control
Year: 2012
Volume: 36
Issue: 4
Pages: 455-467

Score contribution per author:

1.005 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 1.0x B-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

This paper demonstrates that the analysis of fiscal sustainability of social security must include the education funding dimension of public policy, which affects the productivity of future workers. This fact is true under both social security regimes: pay-as-you-go (PAYG) and fully funded (FF). We consider an OLG economy where the government, in addition to running social security, also funds education via a dedicated tax. The education tax rates are chosen, in each period, by a majoritarian rule. We demonstrate, contrary to conjectures in the literature, that the FF social security system produces political support for a relatively higher (compared to PAYG) education funding, and hence generates higher rates of human capital accumulation, physical capital accumulation, and economic growth, Furthermore, it also results in a comparatively lower degree of income inequality.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:eee:dyncon:v:36:y:2012:i:4:p:455-467
Journal Field
Macro
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-25