Mechanism design theory is used to characterize the properties of a least-cost CRP. If marginal land rents decrease with acres farmed then a least-cost CRP is a set of nonlinear price schedules. If marginal land rents are independent of acres farmed then an offer system constitutes a least-cost CRP. The least-cost offer system gives a useful estimate of the upper bound of a least-cost CRP. Empirical results suggest that a 34-million-acre CRP should have cost no more than $1 billion per year.
Publications
The Conservation Reserve Program as a Least-Cost Land Retirement Mechanism
Publication Name
American Journal of Agricultural Economics
Links
Author
Rodney B.W. Smith
Publisher
Ames, IA: American Agricultural Economics Association
Page Numbers
93-105
Publication Date
February 01, 1995
Publication Type
Articles
State
National
Keywords
Conservation Policies and Programs
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