Social security contributions and outlays in the economies of Central Europe do not differ much from those in the OECD countries, so experience in the OECD countries is relevant to them. The main problem: Loose eligibility criteria that allow too much pension money to go to early retirees....

This study identifies systematic determinants of some key budgetary aggregates in transition and OECD economies. Because of the lack of theory on public expenditure, the study is empirical. We use three approaches: regression analysis, non-parametric efficiency analysis, and construction of a...