The fiscal policy process is as much cultural as economic, that is, it is a cultural economic phenomenon. Each country even has its own distinct rituals and traditions associated with the fiscal policy process. For example, in Canada the Minister of Finance is expected to wear a pair of new shoes while in Britain the Chancellor of the Exchequer is to use an old beaten up briefcase to present the budget to the British House of Commons. Accordingly, what follows applies only in Canada. First , there are two sides to the coin of fiscal policy pleasure and pain.
Pain flows from collecting private monies to pay for public spending tax policy.
Second , the only way to gain more pleasure without more pain is through a growing economy. In the long run, however, a growing economy can be maintained only if public finance does not kill the goose that lays the golden egg . Third , rational citizens will do their best in or out of a growing economy - to minimize their pain and maximize their pleasure through lobbying, protests and voting. The existence of such market power justifies a public response including spending, e.g. funding anti-combines agencies, and, taxation.