When is efficiency separable from distribution in the provision of club goods?

Using the homogeneous of degree zero inverse congestion ("quality") functio n employed most frequently in the literature, we characterise completely th e families of utility Functions which are then necessary and sufficient for break-even utilitarian welfare maximising provision of club goods with sel f-selection to be separable from distribution. Two types of separation-invo lving, alternatively (a) the price and quality; (b) the price, duality, fac ility size and total utilisation-are considered. When separation is possibl e, utility functions and optimal decisions take simple, intuitive forms. Ou r results extend the scope of separation results previously obtained only f or pure public goods. Journal of Economic Literature Classification. Number s: D62., H23, H40. (C) 2000 Academic Press.