The state of NC has given us a natural experiment opportunity:
The state budget that goes into effect Friday brings massive changes. Thousands of state workers will lose their jobs. A one-cent sales tax will no longer be charged on most goods.
But many residents will see the effects of the trimmed budget in smaller, more subtle ways.
Some tourist attractions will cost more to visit. Other sites will be open fewer days. And still others may have fewer amenities. ...
The North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro, which gets 60 percent of its funding from the state, is raising ticket prices by $2 beginning Friday. A family of four will now have to pay $40 for admission. Add in the cost of gas and a snack or two and that day trip begins to look a lot more expensive - a point not lost on Davis.
"We go to the zoo at least once every summer," said [Becky Davis of Raleigh]. "But I'm so cheap that if we go this year, it'll just be once."
Note to self: Regress daily zoo attendance on state income, gas prices, zoo admission prices (thank you state legislature!)and other factors (e.g., weather) and estimate the demand and consumer surplus of a zoo visit. Then check and see if the 60% subsidy from the state is a cost covered by the nonmarket benefits.
