In: Finance
describe three types of budget classification and state which is most effective when presenting a budget?
A budget is an annual financial statement which outlines the
estimated expenditure and expected receipts or revenues for the
forthcoming fiscal year. Depending on the feasibility of these
estimates, budgets are of three types -- balanced budget, surplus
budget and deficit budget. Mentioned below are brief explanations
of these three types of budgets:
BALANCED BUDGET
A budget is said to be a balanced budget if the estimated
expenditure is equal to expected receipts in a particular financial
year. Advocated by many classical economists, this type of budget
is based on the principle of “living within means.” They believed
the expenditure should not exceed their revenue.
Though an ideal approach to achieve a balanced economy and maintain
fiscal discipline, a balanced budget does not ensure financial
stability at times of economic depression or deflation.
Theoretically, it’s easy to balance the estimated expenditure and
anticipated revenues but when it comes to practical implementation,
such balance is hard to achieve.
SURPLUS BUDGET
A budget is said to be a surplus budget if the expected revenues
exceed the estimated expenditure in a particular financial year.
This means that the earnings from taxes levied are greater than the
amount that spends on public welfare. A surplus budget denotes the
financial affluence of a country. Such a budget can be implemented
at times of inflation to reduce aggregate demand.
DEFICIT BUDGET
A budget is said to be a deficit budget if the estimated
expenditure exceeds the expected revenue in a particular financial
year. This type of budget is best suited for developing economies
Especially helpful at times of recession, a deficit budget helps
generate additional demand and boost the rate of economic growth.
Here, the government incurs the excessive expenditure to improve
the employment rate. This results in an increase in demand for
goods and services which helps in reviving the economy. The
government covers this amount through public borrowings (by issuing
government bonds) or by withdrawing from its accumulated reserve
surplus.
Among all the surplus budget is more effective