This paper uses microlevel data from the Agricultural Resource Management Survey to examine the changes in the distributions of household wealth and to assess the role farm subsidies play, among other factors, in affecting these distributions. The empirical analysis relies on the concept of the adjusted Gini coefficient and on fixed-effect regression procedures. Coefficients from fixed-effects estimation indicate a negative correlation between government payments and wealth dispersion, with the effect shifting toward more of a positive relation when government payments were allowed to interact with regional dummies.

EPA's new restrictions on land application of manure nutrients by concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) could decrease the net return of 6–17% of the medium and large dairy farms with lagoon systems in the southwestern United States. Many of the other dairy CAFOs in the region could achieve higher net income under the restrictions if they reduce feed costs by better utilizing manure and expanding homegrown feed production.

The Financial and Risk Management (FARM) Assistance program created by Texas Cooperative Extension is a strategic analysis service offered to farmers and ranchers in Texas. The program serves as an example of large-scale, focused programming by extension agencies, as well as the implementation of technical stochastic simulation methods for use on the farm.

Do cost considerations justify the current structure of production of extension services in which one or more providers exists in virtually all of the contiguous U.S. states? Provision of extension services has sizable cost implications for the host institutions. Yet, to our knowledge, there has been virtually no analysis of the impact of extension on higher education costs. Using academic year 1995–1996 data, we estimate a multiproduct cost function for 1,445 public institutions of higher education in the United States, including 65 that provide extension services. We find evidence of significant economies of scale with respect to the provision of extension services but no evidence of significant economies of scope between the provision of extension and the production of research, undergraduate education, or graduate education.

Hypothetical bias is a pervasive problem in stated-preference experiments. Recent research has developed two empirically successful calibrations to remove hypothetical bias, though the calibrations have not been tested using the same data or in a conjoint analysis. This study compares the two calibrations in a conjoint analysis involving donations to a public good. Results find the calibrations are biased predictors of true donations but that calibrated and uncalibrated models together provide upper and lower bounds to true donations.

The provision for producers to update base acres and payment yields in the 2002 farm bill afforded an opportunity to test whether it was feasible to deliver a complex simulation model directly to producers. A Monte Carlo simulation model for assessing the economic impacts of the alternative base and yield options on individual farms was developed and made available to producers via the World Wide Web. The experiences and challenges from this collaborative extension and research effort are described, as well as the issues educators might consider before delivering complex software to a national audience via the Web.

Harvest timeliness is a continual problem in the rotation of cotton and peanuts. Efficient allocation of land and labor resources during production of cotton and peanuts requires decisions be made on allocating resources throughout the growing season. Of particular concern is efficient allocation during planting and harvesting. Through economic analysis and linear programming optimization, planting and harvesting timeliness issues are addressed and compared with prevailing practices. Results for a representative farm indicate that cotton planting should increase during the early period of the planting season as compared with current practice, and most cotton should be harvested before peanut harvest begins.

Integrated Farm Financial Statements (IFFS) software was developed as an M.S. thesis project in the mid-1980s and was immediately put to use as a tool for business planning in one-on-one work with Oklahoma producers through the Intensive Financial Management and Planning Support project. An updated IFFS continues to be used with producers to project financial statements for 1–3 years. Strengths and weaknesses in the software and extension program are noted, along with components that might serve as a model for other programs. Links with research are discussed, as are prospects for future farm financial management programs.

The issue of whether vertical integration can raise market power is hotly debated because firms have a market power-related incentive to integrate vertically. Using a sample of U.S. food manufacturing industries, this “market power” motive is empirically tested in this study. Empirical analysis shows that forward vertical ownership integration (or vertical mergers) did not increase food manufacturers' market power in the final product market. The study, however, shows that both market structure and conduct significantly influenced market power in the food industries.

Farm financial structure may affect both short- and long-run input usage, thereby affecting farm efficiency. Any inefficiencies arising from the choice of inputs can be magnified over time as credit constraints continue to affect input usage. In a panel of 54 North Dakota crop farms, efficiency and debt structure were related. Intermediate debt was found to be positively related to farm technical efficiency, and short-term debt was negatively associated with technical efficiency. Use of intermediate-term debt was positively associated with farm-scale efficiency, whereas no significant relationship was found between short- and long-term debt and scale efficiency.

Coastal communities cannot depend on funding from the state or federal government to maintain high-quality beaches that benefit the public and attract tourist revenues. This article investigates the feasibility and efficiency of beach improvement projects at two Georgia barrier islands through the alternative funding mechanisms of general-revenue financing and user fees. Benefits are calculated from an intensive, on-site survey of beach visitors, and the costs are calculated from observable sources. The analyses presented support beach improvement as an effective policy on both islands under all scenarios considered.

The Nariva Swamp on the island of Trinidad in the Caribbean is being degraded due to increasing human activity. However, its conservation is desirable, as it is an internationally recognized wetland. The study examined an ecotourism project, with an emphasis on community participation, as a conservation approach to the Swamp, via benefit–cost analysis, where the benefits of conservation were measured by contingent valuation. Contingent valuation showed that the residents of Trinidad were willing to pay an average of $56 for conserving the Swamp. The analysis also showed that ecotourism represents an economically feasible use of ecologically fragile resources of this wetland.

The income capitalization approach is used, based on expenditure and nonmarket values collected from travel-cost and contingent valuation methodologies, to measure the feasibility of running a self-sustaining recreational site in coastal Louisiana. Through Internet and intercept surveys, a total of 2,696 respondents, 88% of them anglers, provided information on economic expenditures, destination preferences, and preferences for specific site amenities regarding Elmer's Island. The purchase and subsequent opening of the area to the public were found to be self-sustaining even when considering conservative economic estimates.