Public Economics Commons^™

Smart Sentencing Guidelines: The Effect Of Marginal Policy Changes On Recidivism, Sarah M. Estelle, David C. Phillips

Faculty Publications

Public appeals regarding criminal justice have shifted somewhat from “tough on crime” to “smart justice” that is more lenient when tradeoffs merit it. Among other considerations, smart sentencing policy depends on how sentence severity affects recidivism. Using administrative data on two common non-violent felonies committed by adults in Michigan, we measure the effect of sentences on offenders' future criminal activity. Discontinuities in the legislative guidelines that constrain sentences chosen by Michigan judges provide exogenous variation in sentence severity. Harsher sentences generated by sentencing guidelines significantly reduce recidivism by felony shoplifters but not repeat drunk drivers. Recidivism falls most for young, …

Growing Portland: Not Whether, But How, Richard Barringer Phd, Joseph Mcdonnell Phd

Faculty Publications

In the 400 years since European settlement, Portland has survived the ravages of war, invasion, pestilence, conflagration, and economic depression and recession. Once a renowned manufacturing, trade, and shipping center, it now enjoys what might be called a post-industrial renaissance as a vibrant center for the arts, education, entertainment, and banking, legal, and medical services; and is frequently cited as one of America’s best small cities. As a result, Portland is growing today and is positioned for more growth.

The question, then, is not whether Portland will grow, but how well it will grow; or, how best to manage the …

Paying Teachers To Earn Advanced Degrees: Evidence On Student Performance In Georgia, Noel D. Campbell, Edward J. Lopez

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Incumbent Deviations From Constituents: Further Tests, Noel D. Campbell, Edward J. Lopez, Tammy Rogers

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Incorporating Policymaker Costs And Political Competition Into Rent-Seeking Games, R. Kenneth Godwin, Edward J. Lopez, Barry J. Seldon

Faculty Publications

We incorporate policymaker costs of supplying rents and variable intensities of competition among rent seekers into the standard rent-seeking game. By incorporating these aspects, the game has greater verisimilitude to the lobbying process. The first aspect captures the fact that in rent-seeking contests there is a positive probability that neither firm will obtain the rent. The second aspect captures the fact that firms seeking different rents still must compete for policymakers' resources. We find that lobbying expenditures, rent-seeking profits, and rent dissipation depend on the intensity of competition and the value of the rent relative to policymaker costs. For example, …

The Market For Change: Community Economic Development On A Wider Stage, Peter R. Pitegoff

Faculty Publications

Community economic development (CED) is distinguished by a specific agenda for broader development and accountability - for building local resources, economic capacity and political clout in lower- and moderate-income communities. Organizing and development of low-income communities must take account of microenterprise as the locus of substantial economic activity.

New Anti-Merger Theories: A Critique, Edward J. Lopez

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate these new anti-merger instruments on the basis of economic theory and evidence. I first discuss how the economics of antitrust has developed over the years, with the intention of characterizing the intellectual inheritance of 1990s' antitrust regulators. Within this context, I then discuss each anti-merger instrument, how it has been applied in specific cases, and how it accords with underlying economic science. On the basis of these arguments, antitrust regulators should pause and reconsider the theoretical and empirical bases of applying unilateral effects and innovation markets to merger investigations.

Issues Affecting The Availability And Price Of Land For Agriculture, B. Delworth Gardner

Faculty Publications

This paper first reviews some data relating to agricultural land use nationally and then discusses the huge increases in land prices that have occurred in recent years and some of the implications for agriculture. The final section evaluates the need for public policy to preserve prime lands for agricultural use.

Population Changes And Rural-Urban Problems, Therel R. Black, B. Delworth Gardner

Faculty Publications

A boy patiently for them to have babies and on March 1 the doe presented him with twin - he then had 4 rabbits; on March 10 he had 8 ; on March 15, 16; on March 17, 32; before noon on March 19 he had 64. He was almost afraid to look in the pen on the morning of March 20.