A popular solution to the looming entitlements crisis in the United States is to increase the eligibility age for Medicare. Using an empirical model of insurance choice with endogenous prices, I find that this would have a modest welfare cost. The losses are concentrated among those who lose Medicare coverage. For the non-elderly, the benefit of lower taxes is mitigated by a higher price for me...

Like many small to medium sized water utilities, the Olivenhain Municipal Water District (OMWD) was faced with an ever-increasing burden of information management. In particular, maintenance of mapping systems was not only time consuming, but the pace in which changes were made and disseminated was greatly outpaced by the rate of growth in the area. The traditional method of dealing with this p...

Recent financial liberalization in Taiwan has caused local banks to face major structural changes. This paper examines the cost structure of 36 local banks in Taiwan using the translog cost function and attempts to identify suitable operating strategies for cost reduction and performance improvements. Results indicate scale economies for small and large-sized banks and scope economies for all b...

This study proposes a materials procurement contracts model to which the zero-cost collar option is applied for heading price fluctuation risks in construction.The material contract model based on the collar option that consists of the call option striking zone of the construction company(the buyer) following the materials price increase andthe put option striking zone of the material vendor(th...

The North Atlantic right whale is one of the most critically endangered marine species. Drastic overexploitation has driven this large, slow-swimming baleen whale to virtual extinction in Europe, while a small remnant population of ~350 individuals remains on the US and Canadian east coast. Although this species has been protected for 70 years, recovery has been slight and extinction is still l...