What is a Revenue Cap Regulation?

The revenue cap regulation is a government regulation that seeks to control the amount of revenue that firms and operators in an industry can earn, especially in an industry with minimal or no competition. This regulation permits firms in an industry to change their prices, in so far it will not cause the revenue generated to exceed the revenue cap. The revenue cap regulation compels producers and firms not to exceed a given revenue cap index. It is both an incentive and corrective regulation in which producers that meet the required revenue cap are rewarded while those that exceed the cap face penalties. The revenue cap regulation is commonly used in industries where monopolies exist or where only a few companies control the industry.

How Does a Revenue Cap Regulation Work?

The revenue cap regulation is common in the utility sector - such as water, gas, and electricity producers - and also in franchised monopoly industries. Through this regulation, governments can control the amounts of revenue these industries earn, which will, in turn, lead to the production of affordable products and enhanced quality of products and services to consumers. The revenue cap regulation is similar to the price cap regulation which allows firms to adjust their prices according to the price cap index in order to control price changes in industries. The revenue cap regulation seeks to achieve the same goal but focuses on revenue rather than prices.

Determinants of Revenue Cap Regulation Guidelines

The government itself or designated regulatory agencies determine the revenue regulation guidelines. These regulators take into consideration certain factors of the economy such as inflation when adjusting revenue caps. Revenue caps are adjusted over time, for instance, when inflation rises in an economy, the revenue cap rises and when inflation declined, there is a decrease in revenue cap. Gains in efficiency in the production or usage of a utility is another important factor that regulators consider before making changes in the revenue cap index. Usually, revenue cap increases when gains in efficiency are realized.

Critiques of Revenue Cap Regulation

The revenue cap regulation is not without some criticisms, the major arguments against this regulation are;

• Revenue caps may cause utility producers or firms not to increase their customer base due to the regulation of not exceeding a revenue cap. Hence, regardless of the importance of their products to society, the customers to have access to it are limited.
• In some cases, revenue caps cause an increase in prices set by firms, especially in unregulated environments.

Despite these arguments against the revenue cap regulation, this regulation is said to help industries reduce costs and maximize profits. This regulation also leads to an improvement of quality of service and efficiency which is beneficial to the firms and consumers at large.