Discretionary review creates a different problem: uncertainty after the fact. A project may appear acceptable under existing plans, but developers still cannot know whether officials will approve it.

Before approving a subsidy, lawmakers should identify the public purpose, establish measurable criteria, require the necessary data, provide for independent evaluation and set a date when the program will expire unless it is affirmatively renewed.

The early evidence described by The Wall Street Journal supports a narrower and still positive conclusion: The World Cup brought visitors to American cities and those visitors spent money. What policymakers should resist is converting a month of visible activity into an unsupported claim of economic growth.

The renewed interest in rent control, however, weakens that focus on addressing the problem by trying to manage the effects.