This paper surveys the empirical research on fiscal institutions of the last three decades. The main results are: (i) Constitutional or statutory fiscal limitations have in most cases proved to be effective in cutting down public expenditure, revenue, and debt. (ii) Budgetary proce-dures matter...

This book proposes new fiscal rules to address the debt crisis, including a balanced budget amendment and a deficit-debt brake. It estimates the impact of the proposed rules on the economy over the next two decades