Authors libby rittenberg 864

16.3 Regulation: Protecting People from the Market LEARNING OBJECTIVES Compare the public interest and public choice theories of regulation Discuss the costs and benefits of consumer protection laws Discuss the pros and cons of the trend toward deregulation over the last quarter century Antitrust policies are primarily concerned with limiting the accumulation and use of market power Government regulation is used to control the choices of private firms or individuals Regulation may constrain the freedom of firms to enter or exit markets, to establish prices, to determine product design and safety, and to make other business decisions It may also limit the choices made by individuals In general terms, there are two types of regulatory agencies One group attempts to protect consumers by limiting the possible abuse of market power by firms The other attempts to influence business decisions that affect consumer and worker safety Regulation is carried out by more than 50 federal agencies that interpret the applicable laws and apply them in the specific situations they find in real-world markets Table 16.2 "Selected Federal Regulatory Agencies and Their Missions" lists some of the major federal regulatory agencies, many of which are duplicated at the state level Attributed to Libby Rittenberg and Timothy Tregarthen Saylor URL: http://www.saylor.org/books/ Saylor.org 864