Government & the Economy, ABS-SEC
Even a free-market, capitalist economy needs government rules, regulations, and policiesâand that means bureaus, commissions, central banks, and policymakers to create and enforce the rules.
Government & the Economy Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Absentee ownership
Absentee ownership, originally, ownership of land by proprietors who did not reside on the land or cultivate it......
advance fee fraud
advance fee fraud, type of fraud in which businesses or individuals are required to pay a fee before receiving......
Adverse possession
Adverse possession, in Anglo-American property law, holding of property under some claim of right with the knowledge......
advertising fraud
advertising fraud, misleading representation of goods or services conveyed through false or fraudulent claims or......
Affreightment
Affreightment, contract for carriage of goods by water, âfreightâ being the price paid for the service of carriage.......
Antitrust law
Antitrust law, any law restricting business practices considered unfair or monopolistic. The United States has......
Augmentations, Court of
Court of Augmentations, in Reformation England, the most important of a group of financial courts organized during......
Average
Average, in maritime law, loss or damage, less than total, to maritime property (a ship or its cargo), caused by......
bank holiday
bank holiday, in the United Kingdom, any of several days designated as holidays by the Bank Holidays Act of 1871......
Bank Secrecy Act
Bank Secrecy Act, U.S. legislation, signed into law in 1970 by Pres. Richard Nixon, that requires banks and other......
bankruptcy
bankruptcy, the status of a debtor who has been declared by judicial process to be unable to pay his debts. Although......
bankruptcy fraud
bankruptcy fraud, the act of falsifying information when filing for bankruptcy. It may also take the form of filing......
bid rigging
bid rigging, illegal practice in which businesses conspire to allow one another to secure contracts at raised prices,......
Bottomry
Bottomry, a maritime contract (now almost obsolete) by which the owner of a ship borrows money for equipping or......
bucket shop
bucket shop, in Britain and the United States, a brokerage house, usually dealing in securities, grain, or cotton,......
budgetary autonomy
budgetary autonomy, degree of independence enjoyed by a public entity in the management of its finances. Most commonly,......
Business law
Business law, the body of rules, whether by convention, agreement, or national or international legislation, governing......
Canada, Bank of
Bank of Canada, Canadaâs central bank, established under the Bank of Canada Act (1934). It was founded during the......
Caveat emptor
Caveat emptor, (Latin: âlet the buyer bewareâ), in the law of commercial transactions, principle that the buyer......
central bank
central bank, institution, such as the Bank of England, the U.S. Federal Reserve System, or the Bank of Japan,......
charity fraud
charity fraud, type of fraud that occurs when charitable organizations that solicit funds from the public for philanthropic......
civil forfeiture
civil forfeiture, legal process that enables a government to seize property and other assets belonging to persons......
Clayton Antitrust Act
Clayton Antitrust Act, law enacted in 1914 by the United States Congress to clarify and strengthen the Sherman......
collectivization
collectivization, policy adopted by the Soviet government, pursued most intensively between 1929 and 1933, to transform......
Combination Acts
Combination Acts, British acts of 1799 and 1800 that made trade unionism illegal. The laws, as finally amended,......
commodities fraud
commodities fraud, any illegal attempt to obtain money in connection with a contract for the future delivery of......
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), established in 1974, is an independent U.S. federal agency based......
Comprehensive Thrift and Bank Fraud Prosecution and Taxpayer Recovery Act
Comprehensive Thrift and Bank Fraud Prosecution and Taxpayer Recovery Act, provision of the U.S. Crime Control......
Confiscation
Confiscation, in property law, act of appropriating private property for state or sovereign use. Confiscation as......
consol
consol, British government security without a maturity date. The name is a contraction for Consolidated Annuities,......
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is a U.S. government agency created in the wake of the 2007â08......
credit card fraud
credit card fraud, act committed by any person who, with intent to defraud, uses a credit card that has been revoked,......
Crédit Mobilier Scandal
Crédit Mobilier Scandal, in U.S. history, illegal manipulation of contracts by a construction and finance company......
debt ceiling
debt ceiling, statutory or constitutionally mandated upper limit on the total outstanding public debt of a country,......
debt crisis
debt crisis, a situation in which a country is unable to pay back its government debt. A country can enter into......
Debt-to-GDP ratio
In August 2026, news that the U.S. national debt had surpassed $40 trillion made headlines around the world. It......
debtor and creditor
debtor and creditor, relationship existing between two persons in which one, the debtor, can be compelled to furnish......
deficit financing
deficit financing, practice in which a government spends more money than it receives as revenue, the difference......
Demonetization through the years: A history of making money worthless
Most paper money today is fiat currency, meaning it has value because users have faith in the government backing......
deposit insurance
deposit insurance, special type of insurance, under which depositors are guaranteed against loss in the event of......
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) was signed into law by President......
Ejectment
Ejectment, in Anglo-American property law, legal action for recovery of land from one wrongfully in possession......
Eminent domain
Eminent domain, power of government to take private property for public use without the ownerâs consent. Constitutional......
England, Bank of
Bank of England, the central bank of the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are in the central financial district......
entitlement
entitlement, generally, any government-provided or government-managed benefit or service to which some or all individuals......
European Central Bank
European Central Bank (ECB), central banking authority of the euro zone, which consists of the 19 European Union......
Eviction
Eviction, the process of dispossessing a person of land, be it lawful or unlawful. Subject to any statutory provisions,......
exchange control
exchange control, governmental restrictions on private transactions in foreign exchange (foreign money or claims......
Exchequer
Exchequer, in British history, the government department that was responsible for receiving and dispersing the......
Fannie Mae
Fannie Mae (FNMA), federally chartered private corporation created as a federal agency by the U.S. Congress in......
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), a U.S. government agency created under the Banking Act of 1933 (also......
federal funds rate
federal funds rate, interest rate used for overnight interbank lending in the United States. It is also the interest......
Federal Open Market Committee
Eight months out of the year, the financial market tends to get eerily quiet for two days. Then boom, a big move......
Federal Reserve System
Federal Reserve System, central banking authority of the United States. It acts as a fiscal agent for the U.S.......
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government charged with preventing unfair......
Fee
Fee, in modern common law, an estate of inheritance (land or other realty) over which a person has absolute ownership.......
fiscal crisis
fiscal crisis, inability of the state to bridge a deficit between its expenditures and its tax revenues. Fiscal......
fiscal federalism
fiscal federalism, financial relations between units of governments in a federal government system. Fiscal federalism......
fiscal policy
Fiscal policy refers to the spending programs and tax policies that the government uses to guide the economy. Governments......
France, Banque de
Banque de France, national bank of France, created in 1800 to restore confidence in the French banking system after......
Freddie Mac
Freddie Mac (FHLMC), federally chartered private corporation created by the U.S. Congress in 1970 to provide continuous......
Freehold
Freehold, in English law, ownership of a substantial interest in land held for an indefinite period of time. The......
Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Government Accountability Office (GAO), agency of the U.S. federal government that reports to Congress and bills......
government budget
government budget, forecast by a government of its expenditures and revenues for a specific period of time. In......
- Introduction
- Fiscal Planning, Deficit Reduction, Allocation
- Cash, Unified, Deficit
- Full Employment, Fiscal Policy, Deficit
- Revenue, Expenditure, Deficit
- Public Expenditure, Fiscal Policy, Taxation
- Revenue, Expenditure, Balance
- Taxation, Expenditure, Balance
- Borrowing, Deficit, Revenue
- Fiscal Deficit, Debt, Revenues
- Retiring Debt, Fiscal Policy, Deficit
- Borrowing, Deficits, Debt
- Borrowing, Deficits, Debt
- US Spending, Revenues, Deficits
- Japan, Fiscal Policy, Economy
- Planning, Allocation, Execution
- UK Spending, Revenue, Deficit
- Local, State, Federal
government economic policy
government economic policy, measures by which a government attempts to influence the economy. The national budget......
Guarantee
Guarantee, in law, a contract to answer for the payment of some debt, or the performance of some duty, in the event......
How Social Security works in the United States
Social Security is one of the most familiar, yet misunderstood, financial programs in the United States. For many......
incomes policy
incomes policy, collective governmental effort to control the incomes of labour and capital, usually by limiting......
Insolvency
Insolvency, financial condition in which the total liabilities of an individual or enterprise exceed the total......
Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Agency of the U.S. Department of the Treasury charged with administering and enforcing......
Interstate commerce
Interstate commerce, in U.S. constitutional law, any commercial transactions or traffic that cross state boundaries......
Labor, U.S. Department of
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), executive division of the U.S. federal government responsible for enforcing labour......
lading, bill of
bill of lading, document executed by a carrier, such as a railroad or shipping line, acknowledging receipt of goods......
land reform
land reform, a purposive change in the way in which agricultural land is held or owned, the methods of cultivation......
Lease
Lease, a contract for the exclusive possession of property (usually but not necessarily land or buildings) for......
License
License, in property law, permission to enter or use the property of another. There are three categories of license:......
marketization
marketization, introduction of competition into the public sector in areas previously governed through direct public......
means test
means test, requirement that applicants for public assistance submit to investigation of their needs and resources.......
monetary policy
monetary policy, measures employed by governments to influence economic activity, specifically by manipulating......
National Recovery Administration
National Recovery Administration (NRA), U.S. government agency established by Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt to stimulate......
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency is a U.S. government bureau that regulates national banks and federal......
open-market operation
open-market operation, any of the purchases and sales of government securities and sometimes commercial paper by......
Pacific Railway Acts
Pacific Railway Acts, (1862, 1864), two measures that provided federal subsidies in land and loans for the construction......
Perpetuity
Perpetuity, literally, an unlimited duration. In law, it refers to a provision that is in breach of the rule against......
Ponzi scheme
Ponzi scheme, fraudulent and illegal investment operation that promises quick, easy, and significant returns on......
Prescription
Prescription, in both domestic and international law, the effect of the lapse of time in creating and destroying......
public debt
Public debt is money owed by governments, typically in the form of bonds and other securities that promise repayment......
public investment
public investment, investment by the state in particular assets, whether through central or local governments or......
public sector
public sector, portion of the economy composed of all levels of government and government-controlled enterprises.......
public-private partnership
public-private partnership (PPP), partnership between an agency of the government and the private sector in the......
quantitative easing
quantitative easing (QE), a set of unconventional monetary policies that may be implemented by a central bank to......
relief
relief, in finance, public or private aid to persons in economic need because of natural disasters, wars, economic......
Remainder
Remainder, in Anglo-American law, a future interest held by one person in the property of another, which, upon......
rent seeking
rent seeking, competition for politically protected transfers of wealth. The typical rent-seeking scenario includes......
Reserve Bank of India
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the central bank of India, established in 1935 by the Reserve Bank of India......
revenue sharing
revenue sharing, a government unitâs apportioning of part of its tax income to other units of government. For example,......
Reversion
Reversion, in Anglo-American law, interest held by a prior owner in property given to another, which, upon the......
Robinson-Patman Act
Robinson-Patman Act, U.S. law enacted in 1936 that protects small businesses from being driven out of the marketplace......
Rothschild family
Rothschild family, the most famous of all European banking dynasties, which for some 200 years had considerable......
Securities and Exchange Commission
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), U.S. regulatory commission established by Congress in 1934 after the......