The Economic Impact of Government Spending

Spending by the federal government has doubled in the past 10 years, rising from $1.86 trillion to $3.82 trillion. This has caused the burden of federal spending to climb from 18 percent of GDP to 25 percent of GDP. Because of entitlement programs and demographic changes, however, federal spending could climb to more than 50 percent of GDP if government policy is left on autopilot. At this special afternoon conference, legislators and policy experts will discuss the economic consequences of bigger government, regardless of how it is financed, and analyze proposed solutions.

2:00 p.m. "The CAP Act: To Dramatically Reduce Federal Spending over 10 Years"
 Senator Bob Corker (R-TN)

2:30 p.m. "The Economic Impact of Government Spending"
 Vito Tanzi, Honorary President of the International Institute of Public Finance; former Director of the Fiscal Affairs Department, International Monetary Fund
 Richard Vedder, Distinguished Professor of Economics, Ohio University; Adjunct Scholar, American Enterprise Institute
 Daniel Mitchell, Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

3:30 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. "Spend Less, Owe Less, Grow the Economy"
 Representative Kevin Brady (R-TX), Vice Chairman, Joint Economic Committee

4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. "From Rhetoric to Reality: The Need for a Balanced Budget Amendment"
 Senator Mike Lee (R-UT)

4:30 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. "Lessons from Gramm-Rudman on How to Control Federal Spending"
 Phil Gramm, UBS Investment Bank; former U.S. Senator from Texas

5:15 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Reception