The Microeconomics of Public Policy Analysis

Shows how microeconomics can and should be used in the analysis of public policy problems. This book offers the microeconomic tools necessary to understand policy analysis of a wide range of matters of public concern - including the California electricity crisis, welfare reform, public school finance, global warming, and health insurance.

Teachers and students alike will be thanking Lee Friedman for accomplishing what all too few textbook authors do: breathing the vibrant life of practical examples into the abstract principles of economic analysis. This book links sound economic theory to scores of policy problems, presented in rich institutional detail. It will engage, enlighten, and captivate participants in both public policy and mainline economics courses for years to come. -- Henry J. Aaron, Brookings Institution Getting the economics right is one of the first tasks to getting public policy right. In Lee Friedman's new text, we now have the thorough and thoughtful treatment we need to train the next generation of policymakers and their advisors. Friedman makes sure the student sees the strengths and weaknesses of each tool in the economist's kit. To Harry Truman's chagrin each application and substantive topic gets a balanced 'pro vs. con' presentation. And today's policy analysts, myself included, need this book within easy reach, on the shelf between Varian and Rawls. -- Robert P. Inman, University of Pennsylvania An important book. It should have a major impact in schools of policy, planning, and administration, and even in some economics departments. Friedman does a great job of applying the theory to important real-world problems. -- David Howell, New School University The Microeconomics of Public Policy Analysis will quickly become the most widely used text in graduate schools of public affairs and will be an attractive text for use in advanced undergraduate economics courses. The main argument is that microeconomic theory provides a strong and persuasive foundation for designing policies to achieve efficiency and equity in market and nonmarket settings. This text is significant ... the best to bring together economic rigor and policy applications. -- Samuel L. Myers, Jr., Roy Wilkins Professor of Human Relations and Social Justice, Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota Lee Friedman's new text is just what's needed to prepare the next generation of policy analysts for the challenges ahead. It provides a strong foundation for a public-policy course that could serve either as a complement or substitute for a traditional intermediate microeconomics course. Friedman is superb at developing extended real-world examples that provide a grounded sense of both the power and the limitations of economic analysis. -- Philip J. Cook, Duke University

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