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Agency Problems in Law Enforcement: Theory and Application to the U.S. Coast Guard

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Author Info
kishore gawande (texas A&M)
alok k. bohara (u. new mexico)

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Abstract

We study two issues in the enforcement of public law. The first is whether the system of inspections and penalties set by the regulator is effective. The second is whether a better system of inspections and penalties can be designed, given the institutional constraints under which the regulator must function. We study these issues in the context of oil spill prevention activities of the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), the agency entrusted with the enforcement of maritime pollution laws. A theoretically optimal contract that mixes penalties based on the amount of pollution ex post with penalties based on the extent of non- compliance ex ante is derived. The effectiveness of USCG inspections and penalties in reducing oil spills is then econometrically studied using micro-level data on a panel of US flag tank vessels. Whether the optimal penalty can potentially improve the effectiveness of compliance inspections in reducing oil spills is examined in the light of the empirical results and recent developments in the economics and public management literature on effective incentive contracting. Among our findings is the potential for combining unilateral incentive-based methods with cooperative methods based on reciprocity in order to solve the complex problem of law enforcement.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by EconWPA in its series Law and Economics with number 0505001.

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Length: 36 pages
Date of creation: 03 May 2005
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Handle: RePEc:wpa:wuwple:0505001

Note: Type of Document - pdf; pages: 36
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Web page: http://129.3.20.41

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Related research
Keywords: Violations; Optimal Penalty; Micro-Panel Data; Oil Spills; Public Policy.;

Find related papers by JEL classification:
K - Law and Economics

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Douglas Staiger & James H. Stock, 1997. "Instrumental Variables Regression with Weak Instruments," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 65(3), pages 557-586, May.
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  2. Montserrat Grau & Theodore Groves, 1997. "The Oil Spill Process: The Effect of Coast Guard Monitoring on Oil Spills," Environmental & Resource Economics, European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 10(4), pages 315-339, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Ross, Stephen A, 1973. "The Economic Theory of Agency: The Principal's Problem," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 63(2), pages 134-39, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Steven Shavell, 1979. "Risk Sharing and Incentives in the Principal and Agent Relationship," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 10(1), pages 55-73, Spring. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Stigler, George J, 1970. "The Optimum Enforcement of Laws," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 78(3), pages 526-36, May-June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Alfredo Burlando & Alberto Motta, 2007. "Self Reporting reduces corruption in law enforcement," "Marco Fanno" Working Papers 0063, Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche "Marco Fanno". [Downloadable!]
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