A Quarterly Fiscal Database Fit for Macroeconomic Analysis

Abstract

The study of the macroeconomic effects of tax changes and public spending plans has regained footing recently. Nevertheless, in many occasions, the shortcomings of available official data pose limits to the type of approach analysts can pursue. While this issue receives traditionally limited attention, it is of utmost relevance for policy makers and academics alike. Against this framework, in this paper we construct a quite disaggregated quarterly fiscal database of Spanish seasonallyadjusted public finance variables for the period 1986Q1-2015Q4, in national accounts terms. Following a recent strand of the literature, we pose special emphasis on the models and data ingredients used. The later includes a rich set of input fiscal data taken from budgetary accounts. We illustrate the use of our data by providing key stylized facts on the cyclical properties of fiscal policies over the past three decades.