Thomas Donlan of Barron’s writes in the latest issue about a “modest proposal to study the possible sale of the Tennessee Valley Authority.”
The president’s budget message calls for a “strategic review of options.” It declares, “Reducing or eliminating the federal government’s role in programs such as TVA, which have achieved their original objectives and no longer require federal participation, can help put the nation on a sustainable fiscal path.”
TVA called the proposition “unexpected,” and its chief financial officer sniffed, “TVA is the lowest-cost business model and the best value for the region. We remain financially healthy.”
It’s startling to see a really good economic idea poke its head out of a presidential budget, especially when it carries decades of political baggage left over from the New Deal. So give President Obama credit for thinking strategically.
And imagine the possibilities for extending the idea of selling properties that no longer require federal participation: the federal hydropower assets in the Pacific Northwest, the air-traffic control system, the veterans’ health-care system, the Postal Service, the Weather Service, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Amtrak, military grocery stores, petroleum reserves, and so many more.
