As North Carolina copes with one of its worst droughts in years, the John Locke Foundation has sparked interest in turning to market principles for help. Fiscal policy analyst Joe Coletti prepared a Spotlight report explaining that variable water pricing offers greater benefits than mandatory conservation measures. The idea drew attention from the Durham Herald-Sun, News 14 Carolina, the News & Observer, and WPTF Radio’s “Focus” program, which used audio snippets from the Spotlight’s press release. Joe was not alone in spreading the word about the value of market pricing for water; JLF vice president for research Roy Cordato explained the concept for WNCN television.
