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Economists and the 2002 Farm Bill: What Is the Value-Added of Policy Analysis?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 September 2016

Bruce Gardner
Bruce Gardner*
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Maryland
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Abstract

The 2002 Farm Act is used as a case study of three problematic considerations related to economists' role in policy issues: priority on economic efficiency versus income distribution, the role of benefit-cost analysis, and appropriate policies given market power of agribusiness. The results of the 2002 Act relevant to each of these issues have been widely criticized, raising questions about the effectiveness of economists' involvement. However, given the uncertainties about many key program effects, criticisms of the Act are themselves in question. In this context, the role of economists is seen analytically as generating information for Bayesian decision makers, and practically as gaining attention for that information in the political process.

Keywords

benefit-cost analysisfarm billpolicy analysis
Type
Invited Presentation
Information
Agricultural and Resource Economics Review , Volume 31 , Issue 2 , October 2002 , pp. 139 - 146
Copyright
Copyright © 2002 Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association 

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