Politicized implementation of U.S. oil import quotas, 1959-1973
The oil import quota system in place from 1959 to 1973 restricted imports to an amount equal to the difference between the federal government’s estimate of domestic oil demand and the estimate of...
View ArticleContinuing debate over the economic origins of electric utility regulation
State regulation of electric utilities began in earnest about 1907 and by around 1920 almost all states had begun state regulation. Prior to state regulation, most electric utilities were regulated...
View ArticleJoel Mokyr on growth, stagnation, and technological progress
My friend and colleague Joel Mokyr talked recently with Russ Roberts in an EconTalk podcast that I cannot recommend highly enough (and the links on the show notes are great too). The general topic is...
View ArticleOnline Library of Liberty forum on McCloskey’s Bourgeois Era
At its Online Library of Liberty, Liberty Fund hosts a monthly “Liberty Matters” forum in which a set of scholars discusses a particular set of ideas. This month’s forum features Deirdre McCloskey‘s...
View ArticlePlatform economics and “unscaling” the electricity industry
A few weeks ago I mused over the question of whether there would ever be an Uber or AirBnB for the electricity grid. This question is a platform question — both Uber and AirBnB have business models in...
View Article2015 Nobel laureate Angus Deaton
Angus Deaton is the worthy and deserving winner of this year’s economics Nobel. The arc of his work, from theory to data to empirical application, has been consumption, measuring consumption, and...
View ArticleEconomies of scope are underappreciated
Today in my antitrust and regulation class we talked about natural monopoly theory and what drives the natural monopoly cost structure. A lot of times in practical conversation with regulators and...
View ArticleJohn Neufeld’s Selling Power: Economics, Policy, and Electric Utilities...
At the fantastic economic history website EH.net, I recently reviewed John Neufeld’s new book, Selling Power: Economics, Policy, and Electric Utilities Before 1940. TL;DR: if you’re interested in the...
View ArticleEnergy literacy, innovation, and economic history: a recent talk
The Illinois Science & Energy Innovation Foundation (ISEIF) is a foundation that uses its grantmaking to “create a more energy-literate society that’s ready for the smart grid“. Working through...
View ArticleEpistemology and synthetic market design: Examples from ecosystem services
Some of the most illuminating work in market design lately has been in payment for ecosystem services (PES). These projects provide examples of the continuing relevance of institutions to economic and...
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