Second Generation Fiscal Rules, the Swiss Debt Brake, and a US Constitution Article V Amendment Convention

This essay explores new constitutional fiscal rules and their potential impact on the economy. Solving the debt crisis after many years of debt fatigue is clearly a difficult but not impossible task. The federal government is not likely to default on debt in the short term, but allowing debt to increase at an unsustainable rate exposes the country to increasing risk of default in the long term. Before the country falls off this fiscal cliff, we must enact more effective fiscal rules; and learning to live with effective fiscal rules will require some fundamental reforms in fiscal policy and fiscal institutions.