Upcoming Events
Cost-Benefit Analysis of Environmental Health Interventions
July 12 & 13
Benefit-Cost Analysis for Beginners
September 16 & 17
CBA for U.S. Regulatory
Impact Statements
October 13 & 14
SBCA European Conference
October 19 & 20, 2021
Upcoming SBCA Activities in Europe
The abstract submission deadline for the second SBCA European Conference (SBCAEC2021) is June 1, 2021 . Conference organizers welcome submissions that support the enhanced use of benefit-cost analysis to promote evidence-based decision-making as well as submissions on multiple methods used to assist public sector decision-making, including benefit-cost analysis, cost analysis, cost effectiveness analysis, risk-benefit analysis and damage assessment. In addition, conference organizers welcome submissions on topics closely related to BCA, such as non-market valuation, discounting, equity, social policy, regulation, implementation of BCA, etc., and encourage applications to any public policy area, such as environment, transport, health, energy, etc. Submissions of individual papers, proposals for entire sessions and panels are accepted. The conference will be held online October 19-20, 2021. View the Call for Abstracts or learn more about the conference>>
SBCA is looking for a host for its two-day 2022 European Conference, specifically, organizations that conduct or use benefit-cost analysis or universities where faculty work to develop and apply the techniques of benefit-cost analysis. The conference is expected to be held during October or November 2022 in-person, online, or hybrid (i.e., both in-person and online components). SBCA expects that an in-person conference will attract at least 100 people and have at least 50 speakers, although those numbers could be substantially higher if online participation is possible. Anticipated events include a mix of plenary sessions and three - four smaller concurrent breakout sessions as well as a lunch. Interested organizations should submit a statement of interest to SBCA Headquarters by June 30, 2021. Learn more>>
On Balance Blog
Value of Improved Information about Environmental Protection Values: Toward a Benefit-Cost Analysis of Public-Good Valuation Studies
By Jon Strand, World Bank
Environmental valuation has over the last 40 years grown into a major field within environmental and resource economics. Sizable resources are every year put into environmental valuation work, and an entire industry of analysts is devoted to it. There is however little discussion of benefits versus costs of these studies. A small part of them are innovative and part of fundamental research, and should clearly be funded, and published. But by far most valuation studies are much more practical and aim to assess particular goods or policies with less general interest to the broader public. Their usefulness should therefore be scrutinized. Read more
Program Assessment Opportunity with the World Bank
The World Bank‘s Sustainable Development Practice Group (WB SDPG) is seeking consultant economists to carry out economic and financial analysis of investment projects in the following areas: agriculture and food; environment, natural resources, social development; urban development, disaster risk management, with climate change being a cross-cutting topic.
If you have significant training and experience in analyzing the economic and financial viability of investments in any of these fields, we would like to invite you to register in the WB SDPG Roster of Consultant Project Economists by filling out an online questionnaire.
Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis
JBCA Spring 2021 Issue Now Available
The issue contains selected papers from the First European Meeting of the SBCA plus other papers on key BCA topics.
JBCA Fall Issue Now Available
This issue features seven articles with specific and timely policies suggestions for the incoming Presidential administration in the U.S.
Volume 11 - Issue 2 of JBCA - Summer 2020
The issue presents a set of eight papers of much practical importance to the practice of benefit-cost analysis.
SBCA News
Covid-19 BCA Resources
SBCA is currently dedicated to providing the latest and most informative information on COVID-19 Policy Benefit-Cost Resources.
SBCA Member Benefits
Significant discounts on the SBCA Annual Conference registration.
Connection to the pre-eminent, global community of benefit-cost practitioners, advocates, and academics.
A complimentary subscription to the Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis.
Access to a growing supply of members-only programs and benefits.
Support of the only organization dedicated entirely to the practice and advancement of benefit-cost analysis.
What Is Benefit-Cost Analysis?
Benefit-cost analysis (BCA) is a process through which companies, governmental authorities, and organizations around the world systematically measure and assess the pros and cons of alternatives. BCA can be used to analyze long term effects of large-scale investments, events, regulations, policies, and high-level decisions. BCA goes beyond other disciplines to evaluate not only the financial impact of decisions and actions, but the social, environmental, cultural, and other effects.