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Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae Were Never Privatized
Government-sponsored enterprises dealt with risk and profit differently
September 18, 2008The re-nationalization of mortgage insurers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac presents a serious challenge to national housing policy. But it is important to note that the failure of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is not an example of privatization gone amok; it is an example of what happens when privatization doesn't happen in the first place.
Federal Competitive Sourcing Saved Taxpayers $7.2 Billion Over the Last Five Years
Reason Foundation's Annual Privatization Report says public-private partnership infrastructure projects in various stages of development are worth $104 billion
August 7, 2008Competitive sourcing allows the private sector to compete for jobs and contracts that are currently performed by the government. Federal employees actually won 83 percent of the job competitions from fiscal 2003 through fiscal 2007. But taxpayers are the real winners: the Annual Privatization Report shows taxpayers save $25,000 for every job that is put up for competition because even when the government keeps the job it significantly improves efficiency and reduces costs.
Administration Releases Final Round of Federal Program Performance Reviews
September 14, 2008, 4:30amWhile PART isn't perfect, it's hard to argue with the fact that it's been an important step forward. The next administration would be well advised to use PART as a central building block of its performance management efforts.
What's in the Government's Attic?
December 1, 2004Government at all levels needs to be a better steward of the land it owns. With millions of acres in its portfolio, the government needs to identify what it owns, determine whether government or private ownership is the best and highest use for the land, and streamline the efficient transfer of those lands that can be better used in the private sector so they generate, not consume, tax dollars.
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StudiesBlog PostsOp-EdsReason.comReason.tv
- Developments in Criminal Justice and Corrections
Annual Privatization Report 2013 examines criminal justice and corrections trends
Leonard Gilroy, Harris Kenny, Alexander Volokh and Andrew Livingston
May 6, 2013 - Federal Privatization Update
Annual Privatization Report examines privatization and public-private partnership trends at the federal level
Adam Summers, Anthony Randazzo, Steven Titch and Victor Nava
April 15, 2013 - Developments In Surface Transportation
Annual Privatization Report examines highway and road trends at the state and federal levels
Robert Poole
April 8, 2013 - Privatization, Outsourcing and Insourcing Trends in Federal Government
Federal Government Privatization Chapter of Annual Privatization Report 2011
Adam Summers and Anthony Randazzo
May 1, 2012 - Privatization, Outsourcing and Insourcing Trends in Federal Government
Federal Government Privatization Chapter of Annual Privatization Report 2010
Adam Summers, Anthony Randazzo and Leonard Gilroy
February 16, 2011 - Letter to Treasury Regarding Housing Finance Reform
A Framework for Reforming Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Housing Finance System
Anthony Randazzo
July 21, 2010 - Ten Principles of Privatization
Best practices in privatization to lower the costs of government
Leonard Gilroy and Adrian Moore
July 9, 2010 - Knowing What the Federal Government Owns
A how-to guide for managing federal property and assets
Anthony Randazzo and John Palatiello
June 29, 2010 - Privatizing University Housing
Leonard Gilroy, Laura J. Davis, Sarah F. Anzia and Geoffrey Segal
January 1, 2007 - Detailing Foreign Management of US Infrastructure
Leonard Gilroy and Adam Summers
March 1, 2006 - Privatizing Public Hospitals
A Win-Win for Taxpayers and the Poor
Francois Melese
November 1, 2005 - Rebuilding After Katrina
Policy Strategies for Recovery
Adrian Moore, Lisa Snell and Geoffrey Segal
October 1, 2005 - Offshoring and Public Fear
Assessing the Real Threat to Jobs
Ted Balaker and Adrian Moore
May 1, 2005 - Funding the National Park System
Improving Services and Accountability with User Fees
Adam Summers
April 1, 2005 - What's in the Government's Attic?
John Palatiello
December 1, 2004 - Exposing the Myths and Realities of Competitive Sourcing
Geoffrey Segal, Ade Ifelayo and Chandra Pesheck
August 1, 2004 - Getting the Right People for the Right Job
Solving Human Capital Challenges with Competitive Sourcing
Geoffrey Segal, Adrian Moore and John P. Blair
September 1, 2003 - Why an Air Traffic Control Corporation Makes Sense
Robert Poole
March 1, 2003 - The Extent, History, and Role of Private Companies in the Delivery of Correctional Services in the United States
Geoffrey Segal
November 1, 2002 - Corporate Corrections? Frequently Asked Questions About Prison Privatization
Geoffrey Segal
November 1, 2002 - Designing a Performance-based Competitive Sourcing Process for the Federal Government
37 Proposed Changes to Regulations and Approaches to Competing and Outsourcing Commercial Activities in Government
Carl DeMaio, Adrian Moore and Vincent Badolato
October 1, 2002 - How to Navigate the Politics of Privatization
Robin A. Johnson
July 1, 2002 - Weighing the Watchmen: Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of Outsourcing Correctional Services
Part 1: Employing a Best Value Approach to Procurement
Adrian Moore and Geoffrey Segal
January 1, 2002 - Privatization and Layoffs
The Real Story
Robin A. Johnson
March 1, 2001 - How to Commercialize Air Traffic Control
Robert Poole
February 1, 2001 - Managing for Results at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
A Report to the 43rd President and 107th Congress
Carl DeMaio
February 1, 2001 - Electronic Procurement
How Technology is Changing Government Purchasing
Geoffrey Segal and Matthew D. Taylor
February 1, 2001 - Managing for Performance at the EPA
Carl DeMaio
January 1, 2001 - Infrastructure Outsourcing
Leveraging Concrete, Steel, and Asphalt with Public-Private Partnerships
Adrian Moore, Geoffrey Segal and John McCormally
September 1, 2000 - Reforming Financial Management in the Public Sector
Lessons U.S. Officials Can Learn From New Zealand
Ian Ball
May 1, 1999 - Private Prisons
Quality Corrections at a Lower Cost
Adrian Moore
April 1, 1998 - Competitive Neutrality
Ensuring a Level Playing Field in Managed Competitions
William D. Eggers
March 1, 1998 - Commercializing the Global Positioning System
Albert Blackburn
July 1, 1997 - Performance Based Contracting
Designing State of the Art Contract Administration and Monitoring Systems
William D. Eggers
May 1, 1997 - Privatizing Federal Research and Development Laboratories
Joseph P. Martino
November 1, 1996 - A Guide For Divesting Government-Owned Enterprises
Henry Gibbons
July 1, 1996 - Spectrum Privatization
Removing the Barriers to Telecommunications Competition
David Colton
July 1, 1996 - A Guide for Divesting Government Owned Enterprises
Henry Gibbons
August 1, 1995 - Revitalizing State and Local Infrastructure
Empowering Cities and States to Tap Private Capital and Rebuild America
Robert Poole
May 1, 1995 - Public Authorities and Private Firms as Providers of Public Goods
Clayton P. Gillette
September 1, 1994 - Intergovernmental Contracting For Public Services
John W. Donlevy, Jr.
February 1, 1994 - Rightsizing Government
Lessons from America's Public Sector Innovators
William D. Eggers
January 1, 1994 - Techniques for Mining the Public Balance Sheet
Roger D. Feldman and Thomas M. Ingoldsby
September 1, 1993 - Privatization and Public Employees
Guidelines For Fair Treatment
John O'Leary and William D. Eggers
September 1, 1993 - How to Spin Off Air Traffic Control
Robert Poole
August 1, 1993 - Port Privatization
An International Perspective
David Haarmeyer and Peter Yorke
April 1, 1993 - Cost Savings from Privatization
A Compilation of Findings
John Hilke
March 1, 1993 - How To Compare Costs Between In-House and Contracted Services
Lawrence Martin
March 1, 1993 - Designing an Effective Bidding and Monitoring System to Minimize Problems in Competitive Contracting
John Rehfuss
February 1, 1993 - Rightsizing Government
Lessons From America's Public-Sector Innovators
William D. Eggers
January 1, 1993 - Toward Accountability and Efficiency
Reform of the Bonneville Power Administration
Kenneth W. Costello and David Haarmeyer
April 1, 1992 - Building a Safer and More Effective Air Traffic Control System
Robert Poole
February 1, 1991 - Public vs. Private
Alternative Ownership Scenarios for Electric Utilities
Michael A. Crew and Paul R. Kleindorfer
June 1, 1990 - Privatization of the Tennessee Valley Authority
Douglas Houston
October 1, 1988 - Privatizing the Air Traffic Control System
Robert Poole
November 1, 1986
Federal Government Blog
- Reason's Len Gilroy Talks TVA Privatization, Annual Privatization Report on Heartland Institute Podcast (5/23)
- Are Federal Contractors Immune from Tort Suits Just Because the Government Is? (5/9)
- Developments in Criminal Justice and Corrections (5/6)
- 2012 Corrections Privatization Overview (5/6)
- Recent Developments in the Federal Civil-Rights Liability of Federal Private Prisons (5/6)
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