Government price controls and taxes benefit specific groups

Steps:

• Identify minimum price (price floor) for rice: sets price above equilibrium to support producers.
• Identify maximum price (price ceiling) for heating oil: sets price below equilibrium to aid consumers.
• Identify tax on chewing gum: imposes levy collected by government for revenue.
• Match benefits: producers gain from higher rice prices, consumers from lower oil prices, government from gum tax.

Why D is correct:

• Price floors raise producer revenue (P > equilibrium), ceilings lower consumer costs (P < equilibrium), and taxes generate government fiscal surplus per unit sold.

Why the others are wrong:

• A: Wrongly assigns rice benefit to consumers (floors harm them) and gum to producers (tax burdens sellers/buyers, not them directly).
• B/C: Wrongly assign rice benefit to government (floors aid producers, not fiscal policy).

Final answer: D