I am the Himmelright Professor of Economics at Kenyon College and am currently a visiting professor at Wesleyan University.  Most of my research focuses on the effect of government policies on funeral markets.  Many states have anti-competitive laws that protect small funeral homes from low-cost cremation specialists and corporate chains.  These laws increase funeral prices and reduce the variety of goods and services offered in the market.  While they harm consumers, no individual consumer has much of an incentive to lobby against them.  A map on the website  will eventually give details on each state’s funeral regulations.  If you click on FUNERAL REGS MAP above and then click on the state of CONNECTICUT or WISCONSIN, you will see the sort of information that will eventually be available.

David E. Harrington
Department of Economics
Wesleyan University
238 Church Street
Middletown, CT 06459
Tel: (740) 504-9045
Fax: (740)-427-5276