Local governments shouldn't be in the business of business.
A hyper-local paper recently ran an article about city-owned enterprises. I wrote a response, which the paper published today

"No Place to Compete"

According to an article in the September 17 edition, city governments sometimes find themselves with a conflict of interest: While accepting advertising from an area business can add to the public purse, it means promoting a business that competes with a government-owned commercial enterprise.

There's one clear way to avoid such a conflict: Governments should not have commercial enterprises. Local government has enough to do in seeing to it that citizens have good roads to drive on, parks are maintained in good repair, and police address crime in an effective manner. These and a few other limited responsibilities are more than enough for them to handle.

There is no good reason for governments to own liquor stores and golf courses, or to run preschools, fitness centers, ice arenas, skating schools, or water parks. People who own and work at private companies can and do offer each of these services every day. If government must intervene, it would do better to regulate private businesses or offer targeted subsidies to needy residents. Government-owned businesses are unfair to private businesses, which, by their nature, have no power to tax or regulate their competitors. (permalink)