58th Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society

2021 Public Choice Society, March 11-13, Savannah Georgia


UPDATE January 20, 2021

We are pleased to announce that we are proceeding as planned for an in-person conference. We have reduced the program to accommodate the smaller size gathering. Please see the details regarding safety protocols below. Registration is now open.

UPDATE December 21, 2020:

We have published the preliminary conference program. It remains a work in progress and we update it regularly. As of now papers have been sorted into sessions. Soon we will assign time slots and meeting rooms. As of now we do not have plans to include a virtual component to the conference. Everything remains subject to change. Please see our contingency plans below. Happy Holidays!

UPDATE November 16, 2020:

Paper Submission deadline extended to December 15, 2020.

UPDATE October 27, 2020:

As our scheduled submission deadline of November 15 approaches, we can now provide some details about the space and safety protocols for our meeting. Our contingency plans remain in place as updated further below.

Meeting Space and Enhanced Safety Protocols: The Marriott Savannah Riverfront provides an advantageous setting for a safe conference. The indoor-outdoor, lobby-level atrium rises eight stories and spans 8,880 square feet for a distanced capacity of 300 persons, more than enough to accommodate our entire group. Our breakout meeting rooms have distanced capacity of 20 or more. Enhanced safety protocols including common area sanitizing, directional foot traffic, face covering requirements, guest sleeping room preparation and others follow Marriott's Commitment to Clean. We recently toured the venue and met personally with hotel sales and events management. We remain in continual communication with the hotel to create as safe and successful an environment as possible for PCS 2021. We are not alone. Several other large groups have recently held their events at the Marriott Savannah Riverfront, and others like ours also have scheduled their meetings here with the confidence that this top notch venue and staff inspire. It bears mentioning that this hotel has never closed during the coronavirus pandemic, remaining in operation and open to guests throughout. Browse photos and learn more about the space on the hotel site.

UPDATE September 14, 2020:

We look forward to reading your abstract submissions beginning tomorrow, September 15.

Contingency Plans: If conditions worsen such that we are unable to hold the conference in person as planned, then the Society will move to a virtual option. If we do transition to virtual, we will announce no later than January 20, and each paid registrant will receive a partial refund in proportion to cost differential (TBD). As of now, a transition to virtual remains unlikely.

UPDATE August 28, 2020:

Dear Friends and Members of the Public Choice Society:

We wish you well as the summer winds down. Please note that the website will open for submissions on September 15. We invite papers and complete organized sessions for the 58th Annual Meetings of the Public Choice Society, March 11-13, 2021 at the Marriott Riverfront Hotel in Savannah, Georgia. Our goal is to have as vibrant a conference as ever, while keeping attendees safe and comfortable.

We understand that many of our members will be under tight constraints with regard to funding and feasibility of travel. We certainly hope to see as many of you as possible next March. Please rest assured that the conference hotel has abundant space including indoor/outdoor options for all events. We will be monitoring the situation and official guidelines to determine the safest way to hold meals and other events. There is no guarantee that we'll be able to hold our customary social hours, but we hope to have a robust gathering of the best emerging research across all fields in public choice.

Society President William F. Shughart II will be organizing the academic program. Under Bill's leadership, we plan to restore some of the main features from our cancelled 2020 conference. More details are coming soon. Overall, the conference schedule. including meals and receptions, will be configured to meet or exceed distancing and other safety precautions in effect at the time. Thankfully, the conference hotel is very spacious, and Savannah during March has ideal weather, giving us abundant options. We hope to make PCS 2021 a successful bounce-back year for all of us.

Submissions are open from September 15 to the deadline of November 8. The PCS group hotel rate is $195++ per night for single/double. Persons interested in organizing a four-paper session are asked to inquire with President Shughart at the Contact Form. Check back for updates at the conference website.

We send best wishes to you, your families and your communities. And we hope that you will join us at PCS 2021 to discover new lines of research, share your best work, and have a productive and enjoyable time. We especially encourage you to share this message with your graduate students, who will benefit from an invigorating atmosphere, rigorous discussion of their papers, partial travel stipends (limited availability), optional research workshops, and the chance to compete for the Elinor and Vincent Ostrom Prize for best combined paper & presentation.

On behalf of the Executive Committee, thank you for participating in The Public Choice Society.

Sincerely,

William F. Shughart II
President, 2020-2022

and

Edward J. Lopez
Executive Director and Past President

Important Dates

09/15/2020 Website open for paper proposals and early registration
11/15/2020 Submission Deadline
12/7/2020 Authors informed of status of their proposals
01/06/2021 Preliminary conference program is published online
01/20/2021 Graduate student deadline to upload paper for Ostrom Prize
01/20/2021 Announcement date if the conference goes virtual
02/06/2021 Regular registration deadline
02/17/2021 Cutoff for hotel reservations
02/24/2021 Deadline for authors to upload complete papers (two weeks before conference)
03/10 and 03/11/2021 Pre-Conference Empirical Workshops
03/11/2021 No events currently scheduled
3/12/2021 Conference begins

Conference Agenda

UPDATED

Condensed Schedule (Subject to Change)

Thursday
March 11

4:00 - 6:00 p.m. PCS Executive Committee Meeting

6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Pre-Conference Empirical Workshop (Cancelled)

6:00 Welcome Cocktail Reception (light hors d'oeuvre, all attendees invited)

7:30 pm Dinner on own

Friday
March 12

7:00 - 8:00 a.m. Hot Breakfast (individually packaged)

8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Academic Sessions

10:00 a.m. Plenary Session: Michael C. Munger, Duke University, "Giants Among Us: Do We Need a New Antitrust Paradigm?”

6:00 p.m. Cocktail Reception (heavy hors d'oeuvres, all attendees invited)

7:30 p.m. Dinner on own

Saturday
March 13

7:00 - 8:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast

8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Academic Sessions

10:00 a.m. Plenary Session: Tyler Brough, Utah State University, "Economics as Moral Exchange: James Buchanan Meets Martin Buber"

1:00 p.m. Awards Luncheon (plated lunch)

4:20 p.m. Plenary Session: Claudia R. Williamson, University of Tennessee Chattanooga, "Culture, Democracy, and Regulation"

6:00 p.m. Closing Cocktail Reception (heavy hors d'oeuvres, all attendees invited)

7:30 p.m. Dinner on Own

End of Conference


Archived Information for the 2021 Conference

Conference Procedures

Public Choice Society combines academic rigor with constructive collegiality. We invite all participants to contribute to a productive climate of scholarly exchange.

PAPER PRESENTERS: If you are presenting a paper (as opposed to presenting on a panel discussion), please upload a PDF file of your paper no later than two weeks prior to the start of the conference. Papers will not be searchable and are viewable only by PCS members while logged into the website. You will have the option of leaving your paper for the conference archives or taking it down at the end of the conference. The Society retains no rights or privileges to work presented or posted here. To upload your paper, simply log in to the site and browse to the My Account section where you will find the paper upload tool.

CHAIR DUTIES: If you are chairing a paper session, please check to see that presenters on your session have uploaded their papers no later than two weeks prior to the conference. Session Chairs are also responsible for establishing and enforcing time allocations. With four (five) papers per 90 (110) minute session, chairs should use good judgment to allocate the available time to presenter and discussants while leaving some time for floor discussion. A baseline is 15 minutes per presenter, 5 minutes per discussant, and 10 minutes for floor discussion. Presenters must present in the order of appearance on the program.

DISCUSSANT DUTIES: In most cases, each presenter is also a discussant on the same session. Please locate the paper you are discussing on the PCS website starting two weeks prior to the conference start date. Prepare critical and constructive comments in advance, and aim your remarks so as to promote rigorous yet collegial discussion during the session.

MEETING ROOM SETUP: The hotel meeting rooms come equipped with a podium, screen, and projector with HDMI cable. Please bring your adapters, clicker/pointers, and at least one laptop per session. There will be a WiFi signal in the meeting room space.

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION: Conference registration is $240 for students and $295 for non-students if received by the regular registration deadline (February 6), after which the rates increase by $75. Individuals who present multiple papers are asked to submit $25 per additional paper. To submit your registration payment, or to confirm that you have paid, simply log in to your account and view the information presented in the My Account area.

STUDENT FELLOWS PROGRAM: Subject to funding, we are able to offer a limited number of graduate students with financial assistance to present a paper at the Annual Meetings. Eligibility requires current standing in a recognized graduate degree program and either: 1) submit a paper proposal through the Society website, in accordance with the procedures and deadlines in the online Call for Papers; or 2) be invited to present a paper on an organized session. After the paper submission deadline, the PCS office will contact eligible recipients to request a short letter from their adviser or chair.

CANCELLATION POLICY: If for some regrettable reason you must cancel then your registration payment will be refunded according to the following schedule: full refund if cancellation notice is received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on January 20; 50% refund if received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on February 20; no refund if received by 12:00 a.m. on February 21 or later. Use the Contact Form at the top right of the website to email the PCS office with "Registration Cancellation" in the subject line and a brief explanation in the email body.

EXHIBITORS: Publishers and other organizations are invited to exhibit! Please reach us at the Contact link above. We will reply with information about the exhibit space, shipping, and all other details you will need.

SUBMIT PROPOSALS: To propose your paper for the conference, please visit the Submit Paper tab here on the PCS website starting September 15. Presenting authors will initially submit just the title and abstract of their papers. The regular (non-extended) submission deadline is November 15. The conference selection committee will review proposals and notify authors the first week of December. If your paper is selected for the program, you are asked to upload the complete draft of your paper no later than February 28. Following Public Choice Society tradition, all presenting authors also serve as Discussant on another paper presented during the same session.

ORGANIZED SESSIONS: If you would like to propose an entire organized session, please contact the Society President who will reply with criteria and instructions. Program space for organized sessions may be limited.

Hotel Information

Savannah Marriott Riverfront
100 General McIntosh Boulevard
Savannah, Georgia 31401

Book your group rate for Public Choice Society

The PCS Conference rate is $194 $179 plus tax for single/double occupancy. The deadline is February 17, 2021. While reserving your room, please note the hotel's cancellation and check-in policies. Please reserve early.

You may review the hotel's safety updates and what to expect at the hotel: https://whattoexpect.marriott....


Visitor and Transportation Info

Explore the warmth and beauty of Georgia's oldest city from our riverfront location, with many top attractions, shops and restaurants just a short stroll away. Adjacent to world famous River Street with over 90 shops and restaurants. Blocks away, City Market boasts an eclectic array of restaurants, shopping and art galleries in a 1700's restored marketplace venue. Tybee Island on the Atlantic Ocean is 20 minutes away. Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is 25 minutes away. For additional information visitsavannah.com



Sponsors for the 2021 conference

The Public Choice Society is thankful for the organizational, intellectual, and pecuniary partnership of several sponsoring organizations at the Annual Meetings. Sponsors for the upcoming year's conference will be listed here soon. For previous years' sponsors, click on past conferences above.


Center for Study of Public Choice at GMU
Sponsor of a Graduate Student

F.A. Hayek Program at Mercatus Center at GMU
Sponsor of a Coffee Break & Printed Program

Institute for Humane Studies
Sponsor of a Reception & Printed Program

The William E. Simon Professorship of Political Economy at Lafayette College
W. Mark Crain, Chair

Annual Sponsor

Liberty Fund
Sponsor of Pre-Conference Program

Springer
Sponsor of the Gordon Tullock Prize

Duke Political Science Department
2018 Plenary Session Sponsor

The BB&T Professorship at West Virginia University
Roger Congleton, Chair

Annual Sponsor

The BB&T Distinguished Professorship of Capitalism at WCU
Sponsor of AV Equipment at General Sessions

Duke PPE Program
Sponsor of a Coffee Break & Printed Program

Partial Sponsor of Student Fellows Program, Past Sponsor of Pre-Conference Empirical Workhops and Co-Sponsor of Receptions