Government policies have numerous effects on a country's economic performance. In this study I assess the effects of various kinds of public services and taxation on long-term rates of growth and saving. The focus of the research is an empirical investigation of the growth experiences of a large number of countries in the post-World War II period. The framework for this empirical work derives from some recent theories of endogenous economic growth. In section 9.1, I sketch a model in which public services and taxation affect an economy's long-term growth and saving. This model neglects population growth, allows no distinction between physical and human capital, and concentrates on steady-state results. Section 9.2 extends the theory to allow for choices of population growth and for distinctions between physical and human capital. Section 9.3 brings in some transitional dynamics. In this extension, increases in per capita income go along with decreases in population growth and increases in the amount invested in each person's human capital. Section 9.4 discusses the empirical findings. These results are preliminary and amount to a progress report from an ongoing project on economic growth.