Quality and Competition: An Empirical Analysis across Industries, March 2006

This paper empirically explores the link between quality and concentration in a cross-section of manufactured goods. Using concentration data and product quality indicators, an ordered probit estimation explores the impact of concentration on quality that is defined as an index of quality characteristics. The results demonstrate that market concentration and quality are positively correlated across different industries. When industry concentration increases, the likelihood of the product being higher quality increases and the likelihood of observing a lower quality decreases.

An Analysis of the Link between Ethanol, Energy, and Crop Markets, November 2006

This study analyzes the impact of price shocks in three input and output markets critical to ethanol: gasoline, corn, and sugar. We investigate the impact of these shocks on ethanol and related agricultural markets in the United States and Brazil. We find that the composition of a country’s vehicle fleet determines the direction of the response of ethanol consumption to changes in the gasoline price. We also find that a change in feedstock costs affects the profitability of ethanol producers and the domestic ethanol price. In Brazil, where two commodities compete for sugarcane, changes in the sugar market affect the competing ethanol market.

Welfare Impacts of Cross-Country Spillovers in Agricultural Research, 2007

The welfare implications of intellectual property protection (IPP) for private sector agricultural research are analyzed, focusing on the realistic cases in which countries provide different IPP levels, technology spills over across countries, and the public sector is involved in research. A model is developed to determine who benefits from, and who should pay for, the associated research. The paper contains some interesting results on the implications of a harmonization of IPP policies through multilateral agreements or via technology that allows research firms to prevent the copying of plants and animals that express traits that have emerged from their research.

Targeted Small Business Link

Fall 2009, Volume 2, Number 4

Targeted Small Business Link, March 2010, Vol. 3, no. 1

Targeted Small Business News from the Business Development Division of the Iowa Department of Economic Development

Targeted Small Business Link, September 2010, Vol. 3, no. 3

Small Business News from the Iowa Department of Economic Development

Targeted Small Business Link, June 2010, Vol. 3, no. 2

Targeted Small Business News from the Iowa Department of Economic Development

Targeted Small Business Link, January 2011 Vol. 4, no. 1

Targeted Small Business news from the Iowa Department of Economic Development

Targeted Small Business Link, Spring 2011, Vol. 4, no. 2

Targeted Small Business News from the Iowa Department of Economic Development, Spring 2011, Volume 4, Number 2

Targeted Small Business Link, Summer 2011, Vol. 4, no. 3

Targeted Small Business News and information from the Iowa Department of Economic Development.

Targeted Small Business Link, Fall 2011

Targeted Small Business news from the Iowa Economic Development Authority

Targeted Small Business Link, Winter 2011

Targeted small business news from the Iowa Economic Development Authority's Targeted Small Business Program

Targeted Small Business Link, May 1,2012

Targeted Small Business information from the Iowa Economic Development Authority

Institution Reentry Coordinators Proving to be Important Link, Data Download, Iowa Department of Corrections, March 2010

An offender reentry grant program funded through the Governor’s Office of Drug Control Policy supports one reentry coordinator at each of the following institutions: Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility (MPCF), Fort Dodge Correctional Facility and the Clarinda Correctional Facility. The reentry coordinators there engage in a myriad of activities, working with institution educators, counselors and medical personnel, probation/parole officers and counselors, and most importantly the offenders themselves. The program has not been in operation for very long, and only MPCF has operated long enough to be looking at outcomes. The early returns for MPCF show good promise.

Targeted Small Business Link, Fall 2012

Targeted Small Business News from the Iowa Economic Development Authority