Although the airline, railroad, telecommunications, and electric power industries are at very different stages in adjusting to regulatory reform, each industry faces the same critical public policy question: Are policymakers taking appropriate steps to stimulate competition or are they turning back the clock by slowing the process of deregulation? This volume addresses that issue and identifies the next steps that policymakers should take to enhance public welfare in the provision of these services. Each chapter identifies the central policy issues that have arisen in each industry as it undergoes transformation to a deregulated environment. The authors reveal the flaws in the residual regulations and make the case for faster and more comprehensive deregulation. A concluding chapter identifies how interest groups continue to exert influence on regulatory agencies and on Congress, potentially undermining deregulation. The papers included here were initially presented in December 1999 at a conference sponsored and organized by the AEI-Brookings Joint Center for Regulatory Studies.
Sam Peltzman is Sears Roebuck Professor at the Graduate School of Business, University of Chicago, and author of Political Participation and Government Regulation (Chicago, 1998). Clifford Winston is a senior fellow in Economic Studies at the Brookings Institution. Among his previous books is Alternate Route: Toward Efficient Urban Transportation, cowritten with Chad Shirley (Brookings, 1998).
"This volume contains four excellent papers on this topic (of deregulation).... All these papers are first class. Each of them combines thorough and up-to-date empirical analysis and calculations, and a sound grasp of relevant economic theory. They embody a sympathy for effective market-oriented solutions, and make considered and realistic proposals for future policy improvements.... This is a small but powerful volume that will inform any debate on regulatory policy, in the U.S. and elsewhere. The editors and contributors are to be congratulated." -Stephen Littlechild, University of Cambridge, Institute of Economic Affairs, 9/1/2001 |"... the essays are quite timely.... This volume contains a good discussion of the current state of deregulation in the network industries.... It provide[s] a good discussion of the current issues and policy options. Readers will be rewarded with a thorough understanding of the current issues and how to keep the deregulation process on track." -Brian W. Sloboda, U.S. Department of Transportation, Eastern Economic Journal
