Exploratory Empirical Evidence of the Impact of Economic Freedom on the Real Interest Rate Yield on High-grade Municipal Bonds

Adopting a loanable funds model, this exploratory empirical study investigates the impact of economic freedom on the real interest rate yield on high-grade tax-exempt municipal bonds in the U.S. The AR/2SLS and FMOLS estimations imply that greater economic freedom leads to a lower ex post real interest rate yield on tax-exempt municipal bonds. Other interesting findings include the following: the real interest rate yield on tax-frees was an increasing function of both the ratio of the national debt to GDP and the ratio of the budget deficit to GDP while being a decreasing function of quantitative easing policies. Policy implications of these results include the need to limit the extent of the federal budget deficits in the U.S. lest there will be, among other things, significant limitations placed on the ability of towns, cities, counties, and states to finance outlays in response to changing demographic and economic circumstances and/or maintaining existing infrastructure.