In recent years there has been great emphasis on reducing governmental expenditures at state and federal levels. Reductions have been sought through improved efficiency, elimination of low priority activities, and shifting costs to nongovernmental groups. This last strategy may be particularly applicable to the Federal-State Market News Service program, because many of its users and their commercial interests can be identified. This article discusses the implications of charging for market news services.

This article is derived from a portion of a study, “The Feasibility of Measuring Benefits of the California Federal-State Market News Service,” undertaken: for the California Department of Food and Agriculture by the University of California Cooperative Extension. Authors of the study are Kirby Moulton, Alfred Levinson, and Peter Thomas