Deck 4: Finance: Filling the Till and Paying the Bills

Question 1

Exempting things such as groceries and clothing from sales tax is an attempt by states to make sale tax less ______.

A) inclusive
B) regressive
C) progressive
D) exclusive

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Most sales tax revenues go to what governments?

A) local
B) state
C) federal
D) county

Answer 2

B

Question 3

New Hampshire's state government ______ other states, partly because of low tax revenue.

A) does more than
B) performs as well as
C) has better services than
D) does less than

Answer 3

D

Question 4

______ is collected from contributions, assessments, premiums, and payroll taxes.

A) Sales taxes
B) Income taxes
C) Insurance trust funds
D) User fees

Question 5

Government debt is usually issued in the form of what?

A) dividends
B) bonds
C) mutual funds
D) stock options

Question 6

Approximately ______ percent of federal funds go to specific state programs.

A) 90
B) 75
C) 50
D) 20

Question 7

Intergovernmental transfers are provided by ______ to state governments.

A) local governments
B) county governments
C) taxpayers
D) the federal government

Question 8

Residents of Alaska have ______ kind of tax burden.

A) no
B) a very high
C) a low
D) an average

Question 9

______ receives about 65 percent of the federal funds that are transferred to state governments.

A) Education
B) Medicaid
C) Medicare
D) Social Security

Question 10

Budget shortfalls are also known as ______.

A) defaults
B) defuncts
C) deficits
D) devaluation

Question 11

States with no sales or income taxes often have what type of property taxes to compensate?

A) low
B) average
C) no
D) high

Question 12

What is a measure of the ability to pay taxes?

A) tax burden
B) tax effort
C) tax capacity
D) tax responsibility

Question 13

Property taxes tend to rise when the economy does what?

A) is failing
B) is volatile
C) is booming
D) is decreasing

Question 14

______ taxes do not alter spending habits or distort the distribution of resources.

A) Estate
B) Regressive
C) Income
D) Focused consumption

Question 15

Intergovernmental revenue transfers account for ______ of local government spending.

A) three-quarters
B) half
C) one-quarter
D) one-third

Question 16

______ taxes are another term for excise taxes.

A) Income
B) Estate
C) Sin
D) Gift

Question 17

Payments made to Alaska residents from the interest generated by state investments are known as ______.

A) stocks
B) bonds
C) compound interest
D) dividends

Question 18

______ taxes occur after one's death.

A) Estate
B) Income
C) Sin
D) Gift

Question 19

Landlords may pass the cost of property tax increases on to renters through ______.

A) fees
B) utility charges
C) rent increases
D) add-ons

Question 20

Property taxes in California are capped at ______ percent of the property's purchase price.

A) 1
B) 5
C) 6
D) 10

Question 21

During economic downturns, ______ is the first to be cut.

A) welfare spending
B) discretionary spending
C) entitlement spending
D) employee spending

Question 22

______ are certificates of debt where the issuer promises to pay the holder back, with interest, after a certain time.

A) Stock options
B) Dividends
C) Bonds
D) Mutual funds

Question 23

A service that the government must provide to those eligible, regardless of cost, is called ______.

A) a mandate
B) an entitlement
C) a welfare program
D) an entrust

Question 24

National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius declared which part of the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional?

A) the mandate
B) the increased costs
C) the inclusion of birth control
D) the mandatory Medicaid expansion

Question 25

By whom are the state accounting and financial reporting standards set?

A) Office of Management and Budget
B) Governmental Accounting Standards Board
C) Department of Commerce
D) Department of the Treasury

Question 26

______ is the largest and most expensive state-run health program.

A) Medicare
B) Obamacare
C) Affordable Health Care
D) Medicaid

Question 27

In 1996, ______ replaced the old welfare program, Aid to Families with Dependent Children.

A) Medicaid
B) Medicare
C) the Children's Health Insurance Program
D) Temporary Aid for Needy Families

Question 28

______ are a type of hidden tax.

A) User fees
B) Utility fees
C) Tax levies
D) TIF charges

Question 29

______ bondholders are generally exempted from paying taxes on income received from these bonds.

A) General obligation
B) Municipal
C) Revenue
D) Capital

Question 30

The budget process is one in which governments ______ and set budgets.

A) collect taxes
B) charge user fees
C) assess revenues
D) issue bonds

Question 31

______ is an example of fiscal federalism, in that it is paid for by both the federal and state governments.

A) Medicaid
B) Infrastructure
C) The Humane Society
D) The NAACP

Question 32

SELECT ALL THAT APPLY. Which of the following is one of the differences that may explain the differences in tax effort between states?

A) political culture
B) history
C) geology
D) Medicaid

Question 33

Which of these has to do with paying for infrastructure, such as roads?

A) capital investments
B) bonds
C) dividends
D) public debt

Question 34

What is the largest functional spending category for state and local governments?

A) correctional institutions
B) highway infrastructure
C) human services
D) education

Question 35

Which state spends the highest percentage of its state budget on prisons compared with all of the other states?

A) Florida
B) Michigan
C) California
D) Texas

Question 36

______ are the largest expenditure for state and local governments.

A) Employee benefits
B) Salaries
C) Medicare expenses
D) Social Security payments

Question 37

Most government revenue is brought in through ______.

A) user fees
B) intergovernmental transfers
C) grants
D) taxes

Question 38

Governments often use bonds to finance ______, such as building new schools.

A) capital investments
B) bonds
C) dividends
D) public debt

Question 39

Revenue bonds are secured by ______.

A) the expected revenue of a project
B) the taxing power of the issuing government
C) interest payments
D) future intergovernmental transfers

Question 40

A ______ is the annual accounting period used by governments.

A) tax year
B) budget year
C) assessment year
D) fiscal year

Question 41

What is California's Proposition 13? Why has it created problems for the state budget?

Question 42

What is the difference between tax capacity and tax effort? How do states differ in these areas?

Question 43

Most online purchases are tax free.

Question 44

Budget processes are similar across states.

Question 45

Why is North Dakota experiencing such an economic boom? What might this mean for its tax rates?

Question 46

Deficits are a bigger problem for states than they are for the federal government.

Question 47

Eligibility for Medicaid benefits is set at the same level in all of the states.

Question 48

Some states can run deficits.

Question 49

What was the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and what was it designed to do?

Question 50

Tax capacity and tax effort are the same thing.

Question 51

Roughly 60 percent of all state taxes go into state and local coffers.

Question 52

How do most places pay for public education? What are the advantages and disadvantages of doing it this way?

Question 53

All states have a sales tax.

Question 54

What are the differences between progressive and regressive tax systems? Which is better?