UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA

UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA School of Business

Department of Marketing, Business Economics and Law

Business Economics 479, A1 – Government and Business in Canada Fall 2007 Instructor: Ginny Holtby, B.A. M.B.A.

Class Location: Business 3-10

Class Times: 9:30 – 10:50 a.m.

Class Days: Tuesday, Thursday

Class Duration: Thursday, September 6 – Tuesday, December 4 Final Exam: 9:00 a.m., Monday December 17

e-mail:

Office: Sessional Office, HUB Office Hours: by appointment

NOTE: I will not be teaching class Oct. 16-26. Joe McVea will be teaching class during that time. Please see the section of the course outline entitled “Teaching Approach” for more information.

Textbook: Brander, James. Government Policy toward Business, 4th edition, 2005

Readings: Bliss, M., “Forcing the Pace: A Reappraisal of Business- Government Relations in Canadian History”; Downs, A. “An Economic Theory of Political Action in a Democracy”. Excerpts from additional readings may be required. Advance notice will be provided in class and on the course section website and students will be advised where to obtain the readings.

Course Overview: The role of business in the public policy process: how business organizations influence public policy and its administration, and how public policies affect business. Processes of change are of particular interest. Attention is to the motivation, behavior patterns, and the dynamics of the interaction of different stakeholder groups, policy makers, and managers responsible for the

implementation of public policies. Develops a framework for analysis of the effectiveness and efficiency of different fiscal, regulatory, and promotional policies; consideration is given to the impact of technological, economic, and social change on policy choice in the long term. Competition policy, theory of price and entry regulation, and private sector regulation are emphasized.

Method of Evaluation:

Midterm 25 points

In-class case study 10 points Take home case study 25 points

Class participation 5 points

Final Exam 35 points

Marks will be assigned based on a relative ranking at the end of the term of the sum of the scores in all tests, exams, and case studies.

Teaching approach:

My intent with this class is to go beyond teaching the knowledge of how businesses and governments interact to teach for understanding. Other years, I have relied on lots of lecture, some in-class simulations and the two essays (case studies). This year, my intent is to make the class significantly more interactive, which is why I’ve assigned a participation mark. As you will soon learn, there is often no single “right”

answer to business/government relations. There is knowledge to be learned (normative reasons why governments should intervene, market structure descriptions, public interest theories, etc…) but mere knowing will not serve you well once you are working in business. Active use of knowledge and skill (e.g.

understanding) will serve you much better.

Understanding is a matter of being able to perform in a variety of thought-demanding ways with a topic.

Understanding is being able to explain, to find examples, to generalize, to apply concepts, to analogize etc…This is where student-student interaction and student- instructor interaction is important.

During class, we will ask each other questions and, often, you, the students will provide answers as a means of testing your understanding in a safe environment. Your participation mark will relate to whether you bring examples that help clarify a concept to the rest of the class, whether you ask a question that brings another level of understanding into play, whether you explain an idea to a small group of students.

Joe McVea will be leading the class on three topics – telecom deregulation, energy deregulation and BC Ferries deregulation. Joe holds a bachelors and masters degree of Science in Electrical Engineering. Joe has been involved in industry through many phases of deregulation and emerging competition. Joe will lead discussions around the deregulation of the Telecom industry within Canada and the emerging deregulation of the electrical industry. The class will work in small groups to apply the principles and approaches to an analysis of the B.C. Coastal Ferries Act ( BC Ferries) . The first two classes while I am away will be on telecom and power and during the next two classes, Joe will assign a small group project that will ask you to apply concepts previously learned to BC Ferries. You may be required to do some work on this project outside of class. Joe will provide input into your participation mark during this time.

Notes:

Testable Material

Exams are based largely on the material covered in class. The material in the textbook is testable but is augmented by the material covered in lectures, specifically PowerPoint presentations and in-class discussion. As a result, attendance is expected. Exams will test your factual knowledge and ability to apply the concepts, especially in terms of analyzing and synthesizing issues.

Office hours: “By appointment” sounds so formal. My intention is to be available to students but specific times are often inconvenient for both of us. E-mail me to arrange an appointment or talk to me after class to agree upon date and time.

Absences from Examinations:

Absences from exams and in-class case study can be excused ONLY on the basis of illness accompanied by a Medical Statement or, a family emergency/distress.

Your treating physician should complete the Medical Statement form. The Medical Statement form can be downloaded from the following websit

• For a midterm exam your medical statement form should be presented to me as soon as possible (generally within two working days) following the missed exam. For final exams your medical statement form should be presented to the Undergraduate Office (generally within two working days following the missed exam.)

If an absence from a midterm exam is deemed to be excusable, the student will have an opportunity to make up for lost grades by writing an academic research paper on a topic selected by the instructor. The length of this paper will be 2500 words for a missed midterm exam and 3000 words for a missed final exam. This research paper must be submitted within two weeks of the missed midterm exam. Other alternatives may be discussed but no make-up exams will be given.

If an absence from the in-class case study is deemed to be excusable, the student will receive a date time, and place to analyze and write up a different case study

In Class Case Study:

A short case study will be analyzed and written up by students in-class on the date noted below. The time allotted to complete the case study will be 50 minutes but many students will complete the case study within 20-30 minutes.

Case Study:

The second case study will be distributed in hardcopy at the end of Thursday Nov. 8 class and will be due Tuesday Nov.20 at the beginning of class. The Thursday class November 15 will be cancelled to provide extra time to write the case study. This is not a research paper but builds on the skills developed in the first case study. The intent of the case study is to apply the concepts discussed in class to a particular example. The case study write up is expected to be between 2- 4 pages.

Students registered with Specialized Support and Disability Services

Please note: Students registered with Specialized Support and Disability Services (SSDS) who will be using accommodations in the classroom or who will be writing exams through SSDS, are required to provide a “Letter of Introduction” to the course instructor by September 18 . Those students who need accommodated exams must provide the instructor {and lab coordinator} with an “Exam Instructions &

Authorization” (orange) form one week before each exam.

Academic Integrity

“The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity and honesty.

Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect. Students are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of Student Behavior (online at any behavior that could potentially result in suspicions of cheating, plagiarism, misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the University.” (GFC 29 SEP 2003 )

COURSE SCHEDULE

Following is a course schedule. The content and timing may vary according to issues, discussions and current events that arise. New and additional topics may come up. Guest lectures may be scheduled.

Some classes are not comprised of lecture; rather students divide into groups and work interactively on the application of course concepts to a particular situation described by the instructor. Additional materials (e.g. journal, magazine and newspaper articles) may be handed out in class or placed on the course website. Examinations may include material discussed in class but not necessarily included in your readings, so it is to your benefit to attend class regularly.

Date Topic:

Part 1 - Setting the framework for analysis:

EVALUATIONS/

Reading Prior to Class

Sept. 6, 11 Objectives, Overview of Course, Review of:

Opportunity cost Marginalism

Economic Incentives

Economic efficiency – Pareto Normative analysis of Government

Brander Chapters 1, 2, 3

Sept. 13, 18 Fairness and public policy Positive Theory of Government Firms and Markets

Brander Chapters 4, 5,6

Sept. 20, 25 Canadian Bus Environment, Bliss article Bliss, M.,”Forcing the Pace: A Reappraisal of Business- Government Relations in

Canadian History”, Brander Ch. 7

Sept. 27 In-class case study IN-CLASS CASE STUDY – 15%

Oct. 2 Downs article Downs, A. “An EconomicTheory of

Political Action in a Democracy”

Oct. 4, 9

Part 2 - Applying the analytical framework to issue areas

Softwood Lumber Dispute Brander Chapters 8, 9

Oct. 11 Environmental Policy and Externalities Transition to Joe McVea for four classes

Brander Ch.10

Oct. 16 Telecom Deregulation and competition Brander, Ch. 14 Oct. 18 Energy Deregulation

Oct. 23, 25 In class group work using BC Coastal Ferries Group work project Oct. 30 Ginny returns – Natural Resource Management Brander Ch. 11 Nov. 1 Review for Midterm – begin Competition Policy Brander Ch. 12

Nov. 6 MIDTERM MIDTERM – 25%

Nov. 8 Take home case study distributed Competition Policy continued – Anti-competitive practices

Brander Ch. 13

Nov. 13 UNIVERSITY CLOSED NO CLASS

Nov. 15 BUEC 479 A1 class cancelled NO CLASS –work on take home case study

Nov. 20 Take home case study due – regulation redux TAKE HOME CASE STUDY DUE - 25%

Brander Ch. 14

Nov. 22 Private Enterprise Regulation Brander Ch. 15

Nov. 27 Public Enterprise and Public Goods Brander Ch. 16

Nov. 29 Macroeconomic Policy Brander Ch. 17

Dec. 4 Course Review LAST DAY of CLASS

Dec. 17 FINAL EXAM – 9:00 A.M. FINAL EXAM 35%