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4 Pol'y Stud. J. 4 (1975-1976)

handle is hein.journals/plyssjnl4 and id is 1 raw text is: II. SYMPOSIUM ON ECONOMIC REGULATION POLICY A. INTRODUCTION BY THE SYMPOSIUM EDITOR James E. Anderson University of Houston One of the major tasks of government in the United States is the control or direction of private economic activity. Congress, for example, devotes much of its time to the consider- ation of economic regulatory legislation and many national administrative agencies are involved in its implementation. In the process of implementation, as is well-known, agencies help give shape to the content and direction of public policy. Although governments in the United States have always intervened in the economy, whether as regulators, promoters, or operators, most existent regulatory legislation and programs are products of the twentieth century. Many factors have con- tributed to the expansion of government economic activity: the increasing complexity and interdependency of our society and economy; the need for government to resolve or adjust group conflicts; the ethical desire to protect the economically weak against some actions of the economically strong; the desire of some groups to protect or promote their interests through regu- lation of competing groups, as in the case of the railroads and motor carriers; and changed attitudes toward the proper role of government vis-a-vis the economy. Moreover, the constitutional power to act in the economic arena has been expanded by inter- pretation and usage in response to felt needs. In recent decades both liberals and conservatives have advocated and supported the expansion of government economic activity, albeit, perhaps, for different purposes or benefi- ciaries. As Professor Theodore Lowi has argued, liberals and conservatives once could readily be distinguished on the basis of liberals' willingness to expand governmental action to bring about deliberate social and economic change and the opposition of conservatives to such endeavors. The principle of positive government has now become firmly established and the question has been transformed from shall government act? to a question of on whose behalf shall government act? Thus, liberals are likely to support progress of benefit to labor and lower income groups whereas conservatives are apt to advocate programs of benefit to business and upper income groups. Given this condi- tion, the economic role of government seems more likely to expand than to contract in the foreseeable future (which is the best kind of future with which to deal). A common set of categories classifies public economic policies under the headings of promotion, regulation, and governmental ownership. In this framework, promotion involves government activity intended to stimulate, encourage, or assist private economic activity, regulation pertains to its restric- tion or control, and government ownership to its actual opera- tion by government. While not lacking usefulness, these categories are not mutually exclusive. All government economic activity involves an element of control (or regulation) in that it is designed to encourage desired actions and discourage or prohibit undesired actions. Thus, government could encourage industrial plant modernization by subsidy (promotion) in the 4