Imagine committing billions of dollars to build a broadband network based in part on government promises of financial support. The possibilities excite your potential customers—rural Americans that lack broadband. But then, without warning, the government fails to follow its own rules and puts the promised support at risk.

What would you do? According to economists Oliver Williamson, Pablo Spiller, and Brian Levy, businesses’ common reaction to unreliable governments is to decrease investment. So in this scenario, Americans get less broadband.

Read Dr. Jamison’s complete blog post at AEI.