In order for a society to use its resources efficiently, property rights must be well defined, enforced, and transferable. By now, this basic conclusion of the modern property rights literature needs little defense. Examples abound of the resource waste that occurs when actors do not bear the...

Growth of the governmental regulation of economic activities since the depression is normally associated with industrial produc- tion.’ Indeed, pollution controls, work-safety requirements, and antitrust actions have recently been cited as contributing to declin- ing productivity and...