Are LNG Exports in the Public Interest?

The United States has seen an enormous increase in the natural gas supply in the last three years. Several proposals to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) have been submitted and are currently under review at the Department of Energy/Office of Fossil Energy (DOE/FE). The Natural Gas Act requires the DOE/FE to consider whether the LNG exports are in the public interest before licensing export terminals. Although exporting to Free Trade Agreement member countries is de facto in the public interest, LNG exports to nonmember countries remains a hotly disputed and politically relevant question.     

Getting Out of Debt: Garnishment of Wage in Whose Interest?

Garnishment of wage as a way for creditors to enforce payment by unwilling or insolvent debtors, while very common in Germany and Switzerland, is not very successful. Based on a dynamic model of debtor behaviour, this paper explores two alternatives of reform. One is to reduce the rate of garnishment, which at present amounts to 100 percent of the wage income exceeding a defined subsistence level, thus probably destroying incentives to work. According to model simulations, reducing the rate of garnishment is likely to result in an increase of labour supply but a decrease of garnishment revenue per period. Second, the introduction of a debt release as it exists in the United States would have an ambiguous effect on labour supply. While providing debtors with a fresh start, it would result a partial loss for creditors. A Pareto improvement thus does not seem to be possible. When taxpayers as an involved third party are taken into account, however, a potential Pareto improvement appears attainable through debt release.     

In the National Interest? Political Control and Registration in Norway and Sweden

Dokument nr.15. Rapport til Stortinget fra kommisjonen som ble nedsatt av Stortinget for å granske påstander om ulovlig overvåkning av norske borgere. [Document no. 15. Report to the Norwegian Parliament from the Commission Appointed by Parliament to Examine Allegations of Unlawful Monitoring of Norwegian Citizens]. (The Lund Report). 28 March 1996. (Cit. LR 1996).

Säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [The Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service]. (Cit. STK).

SOU 2002:87 Rikets säkerhet och den personliga integriteten. Betänkande av säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [National Security and Personal Integrity. Report from the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:88 Politisk övervakning och personalkontroll 1945‐1969. Forskarrapport till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [Political Monitoring and Background Checks 1945–1969. Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:89 Politisk övervakning och personalkontroll 1969–2002. Forskarrapport till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [Political Monitoring and Background Checks 1969–2002. Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:90 Den farliga fredsrörelsen. Forskarrapport till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [The Menacing Peace Movement. Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:91 Hotet från vänster. Forskarrapport till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [The Threat from the Left. Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:92 Det grå brödraskapet—en berättelse om IB. Forskarrapport till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [The Grey Brotherhood—A Story of IB. Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:93 Övervakningen av SKP‐komplexet. Forskarrapport till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [The monitoring of the SKP‐Complex. Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:94 Övervakningen av nazister och högerextremister. Forskarrapporter till säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [The Monitoring of Nazis and Right Wing Extremists. Research reports to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].

SOU 2002:95 Forskarrapporter till Säkerhetstjänstkommissionen. [Research report to the Commission of Inquiry into the Security Service].