In the second half of the twentieth century, strategic and economic conditions compelled the U.S. government to start running budget deficits on a permanent basis. A new role of global leadership in containing communism required a robust military establishment. The federal government overwhelmingly relied for general revenue on an income tax code that also could not impede economic growth. And general revenue increasingly funded transfer payments in an expanding entitlement state. Fiscal overstretch resulted in unending deficits that continue to this day. At first the shift to deficit normality was not obvious. The Truman and Eisenhower administrations attempted to hold the line on deficits, but this commitment gradually waned in subsequent years. Arms, Revenue, and Entitlements: U.S. Deficits in the Cold War, 1945–1991 looks at the Cold War era from a budgetary perspective and how defense spending, income tax reductions, and entitlement programs all contributed to the emergence of the deficit normative state. As national debt continues to climb in the twenty-first century, Arms, Revenue, and Entitlements shows how the U.S. reached this point and how a comprehensive policy approach might again restore fiscal stability.

Covers all aspects of superannuation fund management, operations and administration.

The study conducted by the Centre of European Economic Research (ZEW), the University of Mannheim and Ernst & Young contributes to the ongoing evaluation of the proposal for a Draft Council Directive on a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CC(C)TB) released by the European Commission on March 16, 2011. For the first time, details on the determination of taxable income under the proposed Council Directive are compared to prevailing corporate tax accounting regulations in all 27 Member States, Switzerland and the US. The study presents evidence on the scope of differences and similarities between national tax accounting regulations and the Directive’s treatment in a complete, yet concise form. Based on this comprehensive comparison, it goes on to discuss remaining open questions and adjustments needed if the Directive is to be implemented in national tax law. Readers seeking a basis for taking an active part in the public debate will find a valuable source of information and a first impression of how the proposed CC(C)TB would affect corporate tax burdens in the European Union.