Positive economic analysis and the task of state enterprise efficiency and control

This paper reports on the first stage of a broader study aimed at assisting the task of improving state enterprise performance. The paper sets out to identify the contribution that economics - in particular 'positive' economies - can make towards the design of operational guidelines which could improve state enterprise efficiency within the context of the problem of control. A forthcoming paper will use the guidelines/framework developed here to evaluate the reforms to state enterprise policies which the Victorian Government has been conducting over recent years.