A new approach to the demand for public goods

The individual demand for public goods is measured by a new survey research instrument which permits respondents to make hypothetical expenditure and tax recommendations with moveable penny coupons. Because each respondent faces an identical coupon budget constraint, it may be expected that observed expenditure and tax recommendations represent individual maximum utility. The instrument was applied to a random sample of 1000 residents of North Carolina. Statistical analysis of the resultant data indicates significant socio-economic differences in the preferences for particular spending and tax categories.