The Economic Analysis of Public Policy

Cover
Title
Copyright
Contents
Acknowledgments
SECTION I Economic and ethical concepts for policy analysis
	1 The meaning of policy analysis
		A brief history of U.S. policy analysis
		The goals of public policy
		The steps in policy analysis
		Views of government and the roles of the policy analyst
		Critical thinking as a policy tool
		Critical thinking about policy analysis
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	2 A review of markets and rational behavior
		What is "perfect" competition?
		Demand
		Supply
		Equilibrium
		Elasticity
		The net benefits of consumption
		The net benefits of production
		The net benefits of markets
		The rational consumer and the role of incentives
		Incentives and policy problems
		The limits of consumer surplus
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	3 Ethics for policy analysts
		Ethical goals
		Utilitarianism
		John Rawls and the difference principle
		Robert Nozick and the ethics of the minimalist state
		The ethics of income redistribution: a graphical analysis
		The income transfer process and the "leaky bucket" analogy
		Conclusion
		Review questions
SECTION II Economics for policy analysts
	4 Efficiency and imperfect markets
		What is efficiency?
		Pareto optimality
		The competitive market and Pareto optimality
		Market imperfections and inefficiency
		Numerical examples of net gains and deadweight loss
		Public goods
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	5 Efficiency and the role of government
		Taxes in competitive markets
		Other forms of government involvement
		A case study: agricultural policy
		Government intervention in imperfect markets
		Public choice and government failure
		Conclusion
		Review questions
SECTION III Tools for analyzing public policy
	6 An introduction to benefit-cost analysis
		The process of benefit-cost analysis
		Decision criteria for benefit-cost analysis
		Types of policy decisions
		Benefits and costs using efficiency concepts
		Cost-effectiveness analysis
		Weighted net benefits
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	7 Net benefits over time and present value
		Investment versus saving
		The present value formula
		Present value with infinitely long net benefits
		Examples of federal government discount rates
		Alternatives to present value
		Inflation and the discount rate
		Choosing among projects of different lengths
		Conclusion
		Review questions
		Appendix: The Forrest Center for the Arts
	8 Choosing a discount rate
		The ideal market for loans
		Distortions in the loans market
		The shadow price of capital method
		The weighted discount rate
		Other issues in choosing a discount rate
		Long-term policies and intergenerational equity
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	9 Risk, uncertainty, and the market for insurance
		Measuring risk and uncertainty
		Expected value
		Decision trees
		The expected utility model
		Risk aversion and the willingness to pay for insurance
		Health, health care, and health insurance
		Concepts and issues in insurance markets
		Health insurance policy
		Other risk concepts
		Examples of willingness to pay for policies involving risk
		Other examples of willingness to pay
		Risk and the discount rate
		Uncertainty and policy analysis
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	10 Life, health, and health care
		Methods of valuing non-marketed goods
		Explaining the value of life
		How to estimate the value of life
		Case study: child safety seats in autos
		Another case study: child safety seats in airplanes
		Alternatives to the dollar value of life
		Lengthening life and improving health: quality-adjusted life years
		Health-care concepts
		U.S. health-care costs and cost control policy options
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	11 Economic impact analysis
		An overview of economic impact analysis
		Estimating direct spending
		The Keynesian multiplier
		Economic base models
		Input-output models
		Measuring an institution's effect on government
		Economic impact case studies
		Conclusion
		Review questions
SECTION IV Public policy cases
	12 Urban transportation policy
		Related economic concepts
		Modal choice and transportation demand
		Traffic congestion
		Highway construction
		Policies to reduce rush hour driving
		Urban mass transit
		Case study: MARTA and the Atlanta inner core study
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	13 Pollution control policy
		Economic views of nature and pollution
		Valuing natural and recreational resources
		The benefits of controlling air pollution
		Benefit-cost analysis of reducing pollution
		Policy goals: how much and where to reduce pollution
		Direct regulation and pollution control
		Incentive approaches to pollution control
		Comparing direct regulation and incentives
		Climate change
		Other pollution policy examples
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	14 Poverty and income support policies
		What is poverty?
		The United States' absolute poverty measure
		Who are the U.S. poor?
		Criticisms of the U.S. poverty line
		Alternative measures of poverty
		Measures of inequality
		Analyzing U.S. public assistance
		The 1996 U.S. welfare reform law
		In-kind versus cash benefits: the "food stamp" problem
		Conclusion
		Review questions
	15 Policies for the working poor: training, worker subsidies, and the minimum wage
		The problem: skills and the labor market
		A brief history of U.S. public sector job training
		Evaluating training programs
		Job training studies
		The minimum wage
		A recent minimum wage proposal
		The earned income tax credit
		Conclusion
		Review questions
		Appendix: a more complicated training case
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Index