Use your demand schedule for the public good, determined in problem 1, and the following supply schedule to ascertain the optimal quantity of this public good.

Price (\()
Qd
191
162
133
104
75
46
27
18
Price (\))Qs
1910
168
136
104
72
41
2-
1-

Short Answer

Expert verified

The optimal quantity of the public good is four units.

Step by step solution

01

Meaning of optimal quantity of the public good

The point where the collective demand for the public good is equal to the supply of a public good gives the equilibrium state. At this point, there is no excess demand or excess supply. The market is balanced with no wastage of resources and maximum surplus possible.

The price at which this happens is the equilibrium price. This is the price where the collective willingness to pay matches the marginal cost of producing the final unit. The corresponding quantity level becomes the optimal level of production.

02

Explanation for the answer

Combining the collective demand and supply schedules as shared below, we can see that at four units of public good, the collective willingness to pay ($10) matches the cost of producing the additional final unit ($10). Hence the optimal quantity is four units.

Price($)QdQs
19110
1628
1336
1044
752
461
27-
18-

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Most popular questions from this chapter

On the basis of the three individual demand schedules in the following table, and assuming these are the only three people in the society, determine (a) the market demand schedule on the assumption that the good is a private good and (b) the collective demand schedule on the assumption that the good is a public good.

P($)QdD1
QdD2
QdD3
8010
7020
6031
5142
4253
3364
2475
1586

Look back at Figures 5.2a and 5.2b, which show the costs and benefits to voters Garcia, Johnson, and Lee of two different public goods that the government will produce if a majority of voters support them. Suppose that Garcia, Johnson, and Lee have decided to have one single vote at which the funding for both of those public goods will be decided simultaneously.

a. Given the $300 cost per person of each public good, what are Garcia’s net benefits for each public good individually and for the two combined? Will she vote yes or no on the proposal to fund both projects simultaneously?

b. What are Lee’s net benefits for each public good individually and for the two combined? Will she vote yes or no on the proposal to fund both projects simultaneously?

c. What are Johnson’s net benefits for each public good individually and for the two combined? Will he vote yes or no on the proposal to fund both projects simultaneously—or will he be indifferent?

d. Who is the median voter here? Whom will the two other voters be attempting to persuade?

Tammy Hall is the mayor of a large US city. She has just established the Office of Window Safety. Because windows sometimes break and spray glass shards, every window in the city will now have to pass an annual safety inspection. Property owners must pay the $5-per-window inspection cost—and by the way, Tammy has made her nephew the new head of the Office of Window Safety. This new policy is an example of _______.

a. political corruption

b. earmarks

c. rent-seeking

d. adverse selection

Explain the paradox of voting through reference to the accompanying table, which shows the ranking of three public goods by voters Colbert, Fallon, and Kimmel


Ranking
Public good
Colbert
Fallon
Kimmel
Courthouse
2nd Choice
1st Choice
3rd Choice
School
3rd Choice
2nd Choice
1st Choice
Park
1st Choice
3rd Choice
2nd Choice

We can apply voting paradoxes to the highway construction example of Table 5.2. Suppose there are only five people in a society, and each favors one of the five highway construction options listed in Table 5.2 (“No new construction” is one of the five options). Explain which of these highway options will be selected using a majority paired-choice vote. Will this option be the optimal size of the project from an economic perspective?

Plan
Total cost of project (\()
Marginal cost (\))
Total Benefit
Marginal Benefit
Net Benefit (TB-TC)
No new construction
0-0--
A: Widen existing highways
5050200200150
B: New 2-lane highways
14090350150210
C: New 4-lane highways
240100470120230
D: New 6-lane highways
620380580110-40
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