Public goods that are nonrivalrous in consumption, means that the amount that one consumer uses does not diminish the amount available to another consumer.

Public goods that are nonrivalrous in consumption, means that the amount that one consumer uses does not diminish the amount available to another consumer. Making publicly provided Internet service available to all residents of a community is an example of a nonrivalrous public good because one resident using the service does not diminish the amount available to another resident. For example, Chattanooga, Tennessee’s municipally owned electric utility provides residents and businesses with Internet service of up to one gigabit per second—200 times faster than the U.S. average (Newcombe, 2013). Using Hyman’s (2021) definition of public goods and his description of their characteristics, determine which public services are provided by the local government jurisdiction under your analysis.

From the Annual Budget of your local jurisdiction

• Which services would you define as pure public goods, or as close to a pure public good as you can find, that are being provided by the local jurisdiction you are reviewing?
• Are there services being rationed in any particular way within this jurisdiction? If yes, describe how it is being done.
• Are there services you think should be rationed? If yes, how would you propose to do it?