ABSTRACT
The consequences of deregulation continue to trouble numerous analysts of social and economic change in marginal and critical areas. Deregulation is believed to place marginal and critical areas at a disadvantage because the private sector may choose to reduce or end services in areas where the government subsidized or required provision of services before deregula tion laws were enacted. Rural areas are considered to be at higher risk than more populated areas due to smaller market size, low population density, and remoteness. Deregulation thus is believed to contribute to reduced well being in rural areas at the margins economically, geographically, and so cially.
