Teaching Benefit-Cost Analysis is a unique look at the insights of internationally recognized teachers, researchers and practitioners addressing a difficult and controversial subject. Each chapter presents a self-contained module that includes guidance to additional resources, and many contain class exercises to provide detail and inspiration that extends beyond the scope of standard textbooks. The social evaluation of public investments by governments, international organizations and non-profits is an expanding field that encompasses both new and established areas of social policy. This book expands on the methods and issues central to the study of benefit-cost analysis, with specific topics including risk, societal distribution of impacts, limited versus national effects, the statistical value of a life and more. This book?s focus on classroom engagement makes it a valuable resource for teachers of benefit-cost analysis. Its attention to foundational and advanced concepts will be of interest to undergraduate or Master?s-level students of public policy, economics and related areas, as well as professional economists who apply benefit-cost analysis in their work.

Teaching Benefit-Cost Analysis is a unique look at the insights of internationally recognized teachers, researchers and practitioners addressing a difficult and controversial subject. Each chapter presents a self-contained module that includes guidance to additional resources, and many contain class exercises to provide detail and inspiration that extends beyond the scope of standard textbooks. The social evaluation of public investments by governments, international organizations and non-profits is an expanding field that encompasses both new and established areas of social policy. This book expands on the methods and issues central to the study of benefit-cost analysis, with specific topics including risk, societal distribution of impacts, limited versus national effects, the statistical value of a life and more. This book?s focus on classroom engagement makes it a valuable resource for teachers of benefit-cost analysis. Its attention to foundational and advanced concepts will be of interest to undergraduate or Master?s-level students of public policy, economics and related areas, as well as professional economists who apply benefit-cost analysis in their work.

Is there potential for a U.S. regulatory system that is more efficient and effective? Or is the future likely to involve 'paralysis by analysis'? Improving Regulation considers the challenges faced by the regulatory system as society and technology change, and our knowledge about the effects of our activities on human and planetary health becomes more sophisticated. While considering the difficulty in linking regulatory design and performance, Improving Regulation makes the case for empowering regulatory analysis. Studying applications as diverse as fire protection, air and water pollution, and genetics, its contributors examine the strategies of different stakeholders in today's complex policymaking environment. With a focus on the behavior of institutions and people, they consider the impact that organizational politics, science, technology, and performance have on regulation. They explore the role of technology in creating and reducing uncertainty, the costs of control, the potential involvement of previously unregulated sectors, and the contentious public debates about fairness and participation in regulatory policy. Arguing that the success of many regulations depends upon their acceptance by the public, Fischbeck, Farrow, and their contributors offer extensive, inductive evidence on the art of regulatory analysis. The resulting book provides 'real world' examples of regulation, and a demonstration of how to synthesize analytical skills with a knowledge of physical and social processes.