Description: Privatization of government services in the United States has accelerated in the last two decades, especially at the state and local levels. This work focuses on contracting out -- the most widely used method of privatization. Contributors from academia, consulting firms, government agencies, and private providers discuss the why and how of contracting out and examine the results of contracted services, including quality and cost measures of performance. Some chapters apply economic theory to contracting out. Others examine recent case studies of contracting out initiatives. The book points out the pluses and minuses of contracting out and points to the lessons to be learned from the recent history of this privatization technique.

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