Do Markets Make Good Commissioners?: A Quasi-Experimental Analysis of Retail Electric Restructuring in Ohio

Journal of Public Policy

44 Pages Posted: 20 Mar 2017 Last revised: 18 Apr 2018

See all articles by Noah Dormady

Noah Dormady

Ohio State University (OSU), John Glenn College of Public Affairs

Zhongnan Jiang

Ohio State University (OSU), John Glenn School of Public Affairs

Matthew Hoyt

Exeter Associates

Date Written: April 10, 2018

Abstract

Empirical support for the purported benefits of retail electric deregulation is mixed at best. Prior studies that identify states as simply “retail deregulated” overlook complex policy environments in which deregulation is implemented by regulators with a high degree of discretion. Prior studies also rely on Energy Information Administration (EIA) data that does not account for core regulatory interventions that can take place during the process of implementing deregulation. Using robust time series household final bill survey data from the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), this paper provides a quasi-experimental analysis of the price impacts of retail electric restructuring in Ohio. The results suggest that residential electricity prices have increased following retail restructuring in all service territories in Ohio, with significant favorable welfare effects observed only in the Cincinnati area, where key policy implementation stages were not circumvented.

Keywords: Deregulation; Public Utilities; Policy Implementation; Quasi-Experiments

JEL Classification: L43; L94

Suggested Citation

Dormady, Noah and Jiang, Zhongnan and Hoyt, Matthew, Do Markets Make Good Commissioners?: A Quasi-Experimental Analysis of Retail Electric Restructuring in Ohio (April 10, 2018). Journal of Public Policy, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2937372 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2937372

Noah Dormady (Contact Author)

Ohio State University (OSU), John Glenn College of Public Affairs ( email )

110 Page Hall
1810 College Road
Columbus, OH 43210
United States

Zhongnan Jiang

Ohio State University (OSU), John Glenn School of Public Affairs ( email )

110 Page Hall
1810 College Road
Columbus, OH 43210
United States

Matthew Hoyt

Exeter Associates

10480 Little Patuxent Pkwy #300
Columbia, MD 21044
United States

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