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Effectiveness Of The Epa's Regulatory Enforcement: The Case Of Industrial Effluent Standards, W. Kip Viscusi, Wesley A. Magat
Effectiveness Of The Epa's Regulatory Enforcement: The Case Of Industrial Effluent Standards, W. Kip Viscusi, Wesley A. Magat
Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications
The EPA water pollution regulations-the focus of this study- represent an interesting departure from past patterns of regulatory failure. First, the nature of the regulations-discharge limits-relates directly to the policy objective of controlling pollution, and there is no potential for offsetting behavioral responses. If the pollution standards are binding and enforced, they should improve water quality. Second, the enforcement effort is so extensive that enforcement should affect firms' compliance. In the pulp and paper industry, which we will analyze, the EPA averages roughly one inspection annually per major pollution source. In addition, firms are required to file monthly discharge monitoring …
Utility Functions That Depend On Health Status: Estimates And Economic Implications, W. Kip Viscusi, William N. Evans
Utility Functions That Depend On Health Status: Estimates And Economic Implications, W. Kip Viscusi, William N. Evans
Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications
Taylor's series and logarithmic estimates of health state-dependent utility functions both imply that job injuries reduce one's utility and marginal utility of income, thus rejecting the monetary loss equivalent formulation. Injury valuations have unitary income elasticity, and the valuation of non-incremental risk changes and effects of base risks follow economic predictions.
Do Smokers Underestimate Risks?, W. Kip Viscusi
Do Smokers Underestimate Risks?, W. Kip Viscusi
Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications
This paper uses a national survey of 3,119 individuals to examine the effect of lung cancer risk perceptions on smoking activity. Both smokers and nonsmokers greatly overestimate the lung cancer risk of cigarette smoking, and the extent of the overestimation is much greater than the extent of underestimation. These risk perceptions in turn significantly reduce the probability of smoking, as suggested by an economic model of risky consumption decisions. Cigarette excise taxes in effect endow individuals with additional risk perceptions comparable to their current assessed lung cancer risks