Affirm the Role of Property Rights in Water Rights Policies
From Liberate to Stimulate: A Bipartisan Agenda to Restore Limited Government and Revive America's Economy
Battles over limited water supplies in the United States and around the world have long produced conflicts and costs to affected communities. While limited supplies are a problem in and of themselves, political management of water is the key problem. Government control of water allocation generally produces inefficient and unfair results.
- A property rights-based system could alleviate water shortages and pollution problems by properly pricing water resources and giving parties a stake in ensuring water quality.
- Policy makers should rethink current approaches to facilitate water markets, which have developed in some areas and show great promise.