- Description
Solved (A+ Solution)
- The language of price controls
Suppose that, in a competitive market without government regulations, the equilibrium price of gasoline is $3.00 per gallon.
Complete the following table by indicating whether each of the statements is an example of a price ceiling or a price floor and whether it is binding or nonbinding.
Statement | Price Control | Binding or Not |
The government has instituted a legal minimum price of $2.70 per gallon for gasoline. | ||
The government prohibits gas stations from selling gasoline for more than $3.40 per gallon. | ||
Due to new regulations, gas stations that would like to pay better wages in order to hire more workers are prohibited from doing so. |
- Price controls in the Florida orange market
The following graph shows the annual market for Florida oranges, which are sold in units of 90-pound boxes.
Use the graph input tool to help you answer the following questions. You will not be graded on any changes you make to this graph.
Note: Once you enter a value in a white field, the graph and any corresponding amounts in each grey field will change accordingly.
In this market, the equilibrium price ____ per box, and the equilibrium quantity of oranges is ____ million boxes.
For each of the prices listed in the following table, determine the quantity of oranges demanded, the quantity of oranges supplied, and the direction of pressure exerted on prices in the absence of any price controls.
Price | Quantity Demanded | Quantity Supplied | Pressure on Prices |
(Dollars per box) | (Millions of boxes) | (Millions of boxes) | |
35 | |||
15 |
True or False: A price ceiling above $25 per box is not a binding price ceiling in this market.
True
False
Because it takes many years before newly planted orange trees bear fruit, the supply curve in the short run is almost vertical. In the long run, farmers can decide whether to plant oranges on their land, to plant something else, or to sell their land altogether. Therefore, the long-run supply of oranges is much more price sensitive than the short-run supply of oranges.
Assuming that the long-run demand for oranges is the same as the short-run demand, you would expect a binding price ceiling to result in a ____ that is ____ in the long run than in the short run.
- Effects of rent control
Rent controls force landlords to price apartments below the equilibrium price level. An immediate effect is a shortage (excess demand) of apartments, because the quantity of apartments demanded is greater than the quantity supplied at the regulated price.
When cities prevent landlords from charging market rents, which of the following are common long-run outcomes? Check all that apply.
Efficient use of housing space results.
Landlords earn lower profits from renting housing units, but the rent charged has no effect on either the quantity or quality of rental units.
The quality of rental housing units falls.
The future supply of rental housing units increases.
- Minimum wage legislation
The following graph shows the labor market in the fast-food industry in the fictional town of Supersize City.
Use the graph input tool to help you answer the following questions. You will not be graded on any changes you make to this graph.
Note: Once you enter a value in a white field, the graph and any corresponding amounts in each grey field will change accordingly.
In this market, the equilibrium hourly wage is _____, and the equilibrium quantity of labor is _____ thousand workers.
Suppose a senator introduces a bill to legislate a minimum hourly wage of $6. This type of price control is called a ____.
For each of the wages listed in the following table, determine the quantity of labor demanded, the quantity of labor supplied, and the direction of pressure exerted on wages in the absence of any price controls.
Wage | Labor Demanded | Labor Supplied | Pressure on Wages |
(Dollars per hour) | (Thousands of workers) | (Thousands of workers) | |
12 | |||
8 |
True or False: A minimum wage above $10 per hour is a binding minimum wage in this market.
- True
- False
- Calculating tax incidence
Suppose that the U.S. government decides to charge cola consumers a tax. Before the tax, 40,000 cases of cola were sold every week at a price of $7 per case. After the tax, 34,000 cases of cola are sold every week; consumers pay $8 per case (including the tax), and producers receive $4 per case.
The amount of the tax on a case of cola is ___ per case. Of this amount, the burden that falls on consumers is ____ per case, and the burden that falls on producers is _____ per case.
True or False: The effect of the tax on the quantity sold would have been smaller if the tax had been levied on producers.
- True
- False
- Who should pay the tax?
The following graph shows the labor market for research assistants in the fictional country of Academia. The equilibrium wage is $10 per hour, and the equilibrium number of research assistants is 100.
Suppose the government has decided to institute a $4-per-hour payroll tax on research assistants and is trying to determine whether the tax should be levied on the employer, the workers, or both (such that half the tax is collected from each side).
Use the graph input tool to evaluate these three proposals. Entering a number into the Tax Levied on Employers field (initially set at zero dollars per hour) shifts the demand curve down by the amount you enter, and entering a number into the Tax Levied on Workers field (initially set at zero dollars per hour) shifts the supply curve up by the amount you enter. To determine the before-tax wage for each tax proposal, adjust the amount in the Wage field until the quantity of labor supplied equals the quantity of labor demanded. You will not be graded on any changes you make to this graph.
Note: Once you enter a value in a white field, the graph and any corresponding amounts in each grey field will change accordingly.
For each of the proposals, use the previous graph to determine the new number of research assistants hired. Then compute the after-tax amount paid by employers (that is, the wage paid to workers plus any taxes collected from the employers) and the after-tax amount earned by research assistants (that is, the wage received by workers minus any taxes collected from the workers).
Tax Proposal | Quantity Hired | After-Tax Wage Paid by Employers | After-Tax Wage Received by Workers | |
Levied on Employers | Levied on Workers | (Number of workers) | (Dollars per hour) | (Dollars per hour) |
(Dollars per hour) | (Dollars per hour) | |||
4 | 0 | |||
0 | 4 | |||
2 | 2 |
Suppose the government doesn’t want to discourage employers from hiring research assistants and, therefore, wants to minimize the share of the tax paid by the employers. Of the three tax proposals, which is best for accomplishing this goal?
The proposal in which the entire tax is collected from workers
The proposal in which the tax is collected from each side evenly
The proposal in which the tax is collected from employers
None of the proposals is better than the others
- Effect of a tax on buyers and sellers
The following graph shows the daily market for jeans. Suppose the government institutes a tax of $40.60 per pair. This places a wedge between the price buyers pay and the price sellers receive
Fill in the following table with the quantity sold, the price buyers pay, and the price sellers receive before and after the tax.
Quantity | Price Buyers Pay | Price Sellers Receive | |
(Pairs of jeans) | (Dollars per pair) | (Dollars per pair) | |
Before Tax | |||
After Tax |
Using the data you entered in the previous table, calculate the tax burden that falls on buyers and on sellers, respectively, and calculate the price elasticity of demand and supply over the relevant ranges using the midpoint method. Enter your results in the following table.
Tax Burden | Elasticity | |
(Dollars per pair) | ||
Buyers | ||
Sellers |
The burden of the tax falls more heavily on the _____ elastic side of the market.
- Effect of a tax on buyers and sellers
The following graph shows the daily market for jeans. Suppose the government institutes a tax of $40.60 per pair. This places a wedge between the price buyers pay and the price sellers receive.
Fill in the following table with the quantity sold, the price buyers pay, and the price sellers receive before and after the tax.
Quantity | Price Buyers Pay | Price Sellers Receive | |
(Pairs of jeans) | (Dollars per pair) | (Dollars per pair) | |
Before Tax | |||
After Tax |
Using the data you entered in the previous table, calculate the tax burden that falls on buyers and on sellers, respectively, and calculate the price elasticity of demand and supply over the relevant ranges using the midpoint method. Enter your results in the following table.
Tax Burden | Elasticity | |
(Dollars per pair) | ||
Buyers | ||
Sellers |
The burden of the tax falls more heavily on the ____ elastic side of the market.
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This set of mobile-enabled problems (powered by Aplia) covers the consequences of price ceilings and price floors by comparing the free-market equilibrium price and quantity with price and quantity outcomes when controls are binding or nonbinding. It also covers the effects of a tax on a market and how elasticities relate to the tax burden on buyers and sellers.
Questions | Attempts | Score | Percent |
1: The language of price controls | 0.7 | 0.7 / 1 | |
2: Price controls in the Florida orange market | 4 | 4 / 4 | |
3: Effects of rent control | 1 | 1 / 1 | |
4: Minimum wage legislation | 4 | 4 / 4 | |
5: Calculating tax incidence | 2 | 2 / 2 | |
6: Who should pay the tax? | 2 | 2 / 2 | |
7: Effect of a tax on buyers and sellers | 2 | 2 / 3 | |
TOTAL | 15.7 / 17 ‡ | 92.2 % |