Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Climate Change Policy: The Waxman-Markey Bill, Diego Alvarez, Richard K. Perrin

Cornhusker Economics

The Waxman-Markey Bill is a comprehensive national climate and energy legislation designed to reduce global warming pollution and transition to a clean energy economy. In order to accomplish the first goal, the bill introduces a cap-and-trade program.

Department Of Agricultural Economics Publications In 2009, Pam A. Holmes

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

Publications from the UNL Department of Agricultural Economics in 2009.

Taiwanese Industry Competitiveness When Outward Fdi Is Defensive, Ling Sun, Lilyan E. Fulginiti, Yo-Chan Chen

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

The main purpose of this study is to examine the links between outward FDI and the competitiveness of Taiwanese industries. This is done by emphasizing the difference between ‘defensive’ versus ‘expansionary’ outward FDI. The empirical study is based on a panel data of 15 industries over the period 1991–2001. The results indicate that outward FDI of the defensive type, in particular that destined to China, while increasing industry efficiency has had a significant negative influence on competitiveness of the Taiwanese industry through its effects on innovative activity. While outward FDI has impacted the industry’s productivity growth it has not decreased …

Determining Farm Custom Rates, H. Douglas Jose

Cornhusker Economics

As I write this, there is still snow in some ditches and fence rows, and many fields look like they are just about right for rice planting rather than corn or soybeans. Nonetheless, spring fever has hit and the field work will soon be going at full throttle. This raises a frequently asked question: “What are custom rates this year?” The Nebraska Custom Rate Survey is conducted every two years, and we are in the process of analyzing the data from our 2010 survey. We will publish those numbers as soon as possible. At this point we are working on …

“Celebrating Our Heritage, Exploring Our Future”, Megan Voss, Regina Janousek

Cornhusker Economics

The 25th Women in Agriculture (WIA) Conference “Celebrating Our Heritage, Exploring Our Future” was held in Kearney, Nebraska on February 25-26, 2010. Hosted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Agricultural Economics Department, over 375 women participated in the event. A majority came from across the great state of Nebraska, but a few individuals made the trip from Colorado, Kansas, Iowa and South Dakota. Our evaluation data is incomplete at this time; however we have results compiled from 125 evaluations.

Analyzing Acre: Results For 2009 And Decisions For 2010, Bradley Lubben

Cornhusker Economics

In 2009, agricultural producers participating in federal farm programs had to decide between staying in the existing Direct and Counter-Cyclical Program (DCP), and the new Average Crop Revenue Election Program (ACRE). If producers chose to keep the DCP, their farm income safety net is strictly tied to crop prices, with a combination of marketing loans, counter-cyclical payments and direct payments. If producers chose the new ACRE program, they changed their farm income safety net to a combination of price and revenue. The new ACRE component is based on revenue and replaces the counter-cyclical payment. The other parts of the safety …

Cropland Values Rise While Rangeland Values Fall, Bruce B. Johnson, Ryan Lukassen, Tyler Rosener

Cornhusker Economics

Preliminary findings from the 2010 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Nebraska Farm Real Estate Survey show cropland values rising across the entire state over the past 12 months. This follows on the heels of a year of little to no value change for most of the state. For the year ending February 1, 2010, dryland cropland with no irrigation potential rose an average of 6.4 percent, while state-wide averages for gravity irrigated cropland and center pivot irrigated cropland climbed 5.2 and 6.1 percent, respectively (Table 1 on next page). Statewide, dryland cropland with potential to be developed for irrigation rose 7.3 percent …

Energy Restriction During Breeding Gilt Development: An Economic Analysis, Justin Cech, Darrell R. Mark, Roger K. Wilson

Cornhusker Economics

Swine production has increasingly become a lowmargin business. As costs of production have increased, producers are continuing to increase efficiency in both market pig production and gilt development. Restricting energy during gilt development reduces feeding costs and can enhance some productivity measures, but can also negatively impact other areas of production. Thus, the net economic returns from a restricted energy gilt development program are unclear. This study utilized gilt development and market pig production data for two genetic lines of hogs, LWxLR (a cross between industry Large White and Landrace) and L45X (a Nebraska line selected 23 generations for increased …

Carbon Emission Control Policies Within China’S Power Generation Sector, Zhenyu Zhang, Karina Schoengold

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

The paper examines the potential for emissions control policy using the example of the power generation sector in China. The analytical model is developed using a joint production function, where carbon emissions and electricity are jointly produced using capital and fossil fuel inputs. Abatement of emissions can be achieved by investment in two types of capital – production capital that improves the production efficiency, or abatement capital that removes the emissions. The analytical model shows that economic growth can be achieved while still keeping the emission stock at a stable level. The results are estimated using data from China’s electricity …

Tailoring Rural Community Web Sites To New Residents, Cheryl Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell

Cornhusker Economics

Recruiting and retaining new residents is critically important to communities that are experiencing either job growth or a declining population. City councils and village boards across the state often ask the question, “How can we bring in and keep new people today?” This issue has not gone unnoticed by the Nebraska Department of Economic Development or the University of Nebraska.

The American Recovery And Reinvestment Act Of 2009, Tina N. Barrett

Cornhusker Economics

President Obama signed the $787 billion economic stimulus package into law on February 17, 2009. What will this mean to individuals or to tax law for 2009?

Cost Of Production And Crop Insurance, Tina N. Barrett, Brad Heinrichs

Cornhusker Economics

As we approach the March 15 th deadline for signing up for Federal Crop Insurance there are many things to consider before producers make a decision. Obviously, the rates, weather scares, market volatility and “whatever I did last year” will play a part in producers’ decisions, but I think very few consider the real issue of their cost of production.

Nebraska Ethanol's Carbon Footprint, Richard K. Perrin, Diego Alvarez

Cornhusker Economics

If burning a gallon of ethanol emits less greenhouse gas or GHGs (CO₂, primarily), than the gasoline it replaces then it has a smaller carbon footprint than gasoline. Actually, it is the amount of fossil CO₂ emitted that matters, because CO₂ from fossil fuels represents "new" carbon in the atmosphere, whereas the CO₂ released by corn ethanol is recycled atmospheric carbon.

Trade Adjustment Assistance For Farmers Available 2010, David J. Goeller

Cornhusker Economics

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 has re-authorized and modified the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers program. The statute authorizes an appropriation of not more than $90 million per year for the next three fiscal years. The TAA for Farmers program helps producers of raw agricultural commodities (farmers, ranchers or fishermen) who have experienced significant declines in price or production, adjust to the changing economic environment brought on by import competition. The program provides benefits to eligible producers in the form of educational assistance, as well as up to $12,000 per producer in cash benefits to help …

Variation Of Environmental Regulation Stringency Among The Top Ten U.S. Hog Producing States, Gibson Nene, Karina Schoengold

Cornhusker Economics

The U.S. hog industry, once primarily made up of small owner-operated crop-hog farms, has become dominated by large specialized operations characterized by low costs and improved technologies in livestock management. Such changes have triggered concerns over the dangers large Hog Feeding Operations (HFOs) are likely to pose to the environment. In 2007, the top ten states accounted for more than 85 percent of total U.S. hog production (Iowa (IA), North Carolina (NC), Minnesota (MN), Illinois (IL), Nebraska (NE), Indiana (IN), Missouri (MO), Oklahoma (OK), Ohio (OH), and Kansas (KS)). With such domination on production, these states are often the subject …

The U.S. Import Of Beef: Friend Or Foe To Domestic Beef Production?, Sunil P. Dhoubhadel, Matthew C. Stockton

Cornhusker Economics

Controversy surrounding the United States import of beef has been an issue since at least 1958, which marked the beginning of major imports from Australia (Edward, 1964). From the onset, U.S. beef producers have been concerned that beef imports would depress the prices they receive for their product. Consumer groups, on the other hand, have welcomed increased imports, expecting that increased competition would lower meat prices. As a result of these conflicting views, the past 50 years has seen the creation of various measures of legislation which control the volume of imports.

Landowner Wind Energy Associations, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

Many Nebraska farmers and rural landowners are receiving offers to purchase wind energy leases. However, landowners have little information regarding wind lease rates in Nebraska, and wind leases are relatively new in the state. Some rural advocates suggest that landowners pool their interests in what are called Landowner Wind Energy Associations (LWEAs). LWEA advantages include information pooling and the ability to solicit wind energy development proposals meeting LWEA specifications from wind energy developers. This newsletter takes a quick look at LWEA advantages, LWEA operating agreement provisions and LWEA wind energy development requests for proposal provisions.

Risk Management Challenges And Opportunities In 2010, H. Douglas Jose

Cornhusker Economics

In 2009, agriculture was impacted by significant volatility in commodity and input prices and major world economic events. The world economy continued to flounder, resulting in reduced demand for agricultural commodities, particularly livestock products. The H1N1 outbreak further exacerbated the situation as consumers around the world reduced their consumption of pork. In the last quarter of 2009, unemployment in the United States reached ten percent and continues to rise each month, albeit at a slower rate. In recent reports economic analysts contend the reported figures underestimate the actual unemployment, and that we will continue to face ten percent or more …

Empathy Conditioned Conservation: “Walking-In-The-Shoes-Of-Others” As A Conservation Farmer, Robert Sheeder, Gary D. Lynne

Cornhusker Economics

Since the destruction and despair caused by the dust bowl of the 1930’s, Americans and their government have taken a keen interest in natural resource conservation policy on agricultural land. The Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936 was the first farm bill to include provisions that provided payments to farmers willing to employ soil conservation measures (Cain and Lovejoy, 2004). While the main purpose of this bill was to provide financial support to impoverished farmers, the fact remains that natural resource conservation was starting to become an important issue for the American public.

Two And A Half Cheers For The Midwestern Bourgeoisie: Role Of The Virtues In Tempering Business Decisions, Marianna Khachaturyan, Gary D. Lynne

Cornhusker Economics

A recent book (The Bourgeois Virtues: Ethics for an Age of Commerce, D. N. McCloskey), raises the matter of the role of the virtues in business and economic choice, arguing that capitalism can indeed, be virtuous or at least better than the alternative(s). This argument is especially timely in light of the apparent excesses on Wall Street and in some banking/financial institutions. Excessive greed and often the lack of business ethics contributed in substantive ways to the financial crisis and near economic meltdown we have been experiencing. As McCloskey, (2006, pp. 1-2) argues (in setting the stage for …

Science And The Climate Change Debacle, Ray Supalla

Cornhusker Economics

As I write this on the first business day of 2010, I find myself thinking about the importance of respecting alternative views --- not only alternative political views, but also alternative scientific views. Good science requires that we understand the limits of knowledge and continuously seek the truth through respectful questioning, replication and review. In the climate change debate, which recently culminated in a disappointing and largely ineffective conference in Copenhagen, these salient principles of science were grossly violated. Well respected climate scientists proceeded well beyond the limits of their knowledge and became policy advocates. They demeaned anyone who dared …

Measuring Economic Impacts Of Drought: A Review And Discussion, Ya Ding, Michael J. Hayes, Melissa Widhalm

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

A comprehensive assessment of drought economic impacts provides critical information to rational decisions supporting drought mitigation policies and programs. The objective of this paper is to increase the understanding of the full scope of drought economic impacts and the associated quantitative assessment methodologies. To accomplish this, the paper reviews the literature of drought economic impact studies in both agricultural and non-agricultural sectors, summarizes the methods and data employed, compares the various results, and investigates the problems and limitations of previous studies. The paper concludes with a discussion of the challenges and directions of future improvement on drought economic impact assessment.

Sustainability Through Profitability: The Triple Bottom Line, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Presentations and White Papers

Today’s highly competitive, globalized world requires organizations and businesses to think differently about how they are going to stay in business. Businesses can no longer afford to focus on profits as their sole purpose for existence. Organizations must instead think about the “Triple Bottom Line” and its implications for their ability to grow their brand, customer loyalty and profits.

Identifying Profitable Characteristics Of Steer Calves To Be Retained, Matt Stockton, Brian Williams

Cornhusker Economics

A recent study done by the Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, investigates the predictive power of physical characteristics exhibited by steer calves, at and prior to weaning, on profits associated with weaned calf retention. Historically, retained ownership of beef cattle calves owned from birth through the finishing stage of production by a single owner, has been found to be a profitable endeavor for cow-calf producers. Despite these findings, observed evidence indicates many producers choose not to retain ownership. Three reasons that may explain this include tradition, cash flow needs of the business and risk. Producers who choose to …

Understanding The Value Of Water In Nebraska: Future Expectations And Considerations, Christopher L. Thompson, Ray Supalla

Cornhusker Economics

Nebraska’s water resources are cost-effective insurance for harnessing the productive potential of cropland. During the last 30 years, intensive irrigation development in Western Nebraska has led to regulations to prevent or reduce the over-use of Nebraska’s share of both surface and groundwater. Despite regulations affecting the amount of available water, farmers have been able to manage water in ways that lead to an acceptable net return, with little impact on land values. However, as stricter regulations are put in place to limit the amount of water that can be withdrawn each year per irrigated acre, it is quite possible that …

Price Discovery In Nebraska Cattle Markets, Matthew C. Stockton, David A. Bessler, Roger K. Wilson

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

Monthly observations on prices from 10 weight/gender classifications of Nebraska beef cattle are studied in an error correction model (ECM) framework. This study attempts a replication of the 2003 paper on Texas prices by Bessler and Davis, where they find medium heifers (600–700 lb) at the center of price discovery. Using the ECM results Nebraska light steers are found to be weakly exogenous, with the innovation accounting results showing marked differences. Industry structure, production choices, and animal type and breeding herd differences between Texas and Nebraska are proposed as plausible reasons for partial (or incomplete) success at replication.

2010 Nebraska Wind Energy Legislation, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

In 2010 the Nebraska Unicameral enacted a major wind energy statute, LB1048, that will lead to significantly increased wind energy development in Nebraska. Nebraska has always had major wind energy development potential, but wind farm development has lagged far behind this potential. LB1048 changes this, and will allow Nebraska to increase wind energy development.

A Quick Look At Nebraska’S Youth Population Data From Recent Census Estimates, Randy Cantrell

Cornhusker Economics

According to population estimates released by the Bureau of the Census, Nebraska’s population under 18 years of age grew between the years 2000 and 2009, but at a rate much below that of the general population and in a geographically very uneven fashion.

Overall, it is estimated that Nebraska’s population under 18 years of age grew by 0.31 percent between 2000 and 2009 (from 450,242 to 451,641), while the total population grew by 4.98 percent. However, young Nebraskans increased in number in only ten of the state’s 93 counties. Of the 83 counties that saw their youth decline in number, …

Sustainability Through Profitability: The Triple Bottom Line, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Cornhusker Economics

Today’s highly competitive, globalized world requires organizations and businesses to think differently about how they are going to stay in business. Businesses can no longer afford to focus on profits as their sole purpose for existence. Organizations must instead think about the “Triple Bottom Line” and its implications for their ability to grow their brand, customer loyalty and profits.

The three components of the Triple Bottom Line are: people and community (social responsibility), planet (environmental sustainability) and profit (the bottom line). Successful 21st century organizations must consider how they are going to actively engage in each of the Triple Bottom …

The Status Of International Negotiations On Climate Change, Federico Trindade, Diego R. Alvarez

Cornhusker Economics

In the October 20, 2010 issue of this newsletter we talked about the status of United States initiatives in limiting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Although there are uncertainties associated with the science of climate change, some aspects of the science are known with virtual certainty (they have a greater than 99 percent chance of being true). Scientists know with virtual certainty that levels of greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, have been increasing since pre-industrial times; that the atmospheric buildup of CO2 and other greenhouse gases is largely the result of human activities such as the burning of …