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Comments to EPA on reconsideration of Boiler MACT
Boiler MACT regulations will take harmful soot out of the air as well as mercury and other heavy metals. It will have a significant positive effect on respiratory and cardiovascular health. But EPA is currently reconsidering some of the rule it deems shaky.
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Comments to the Virginia Board of Health on Access to Health Care
Recently, women’s health has been a topic of national news. It’s also made headlines in Virginia where the state government has taken steps that could effectively shutter many women’s health clinics.
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Comments to EPA and DOT on CAFE Standards for Model Years 2017-2025
Cars that hit the streets in 2017 through 2025 will run on far less fuel than they do now. Last summer, the Obama Administration announced a deal with automakers aiming to up the average to 56 miles per gallon and EPA-DOT proposed a new rule that would hold them to that standard.
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Are Passenger Vehicles Positional Goods?
Consumer Welfare Implications of More Stringent CAFE Standards
Are Passenger Vehicles Positional Goods? examines to what degree vehicles generate consumption externalities that are not currently corrected for by the market, and whether a
uniform downward shift in the size of the passenger vehicle fleet will actually result in reduced consumer welfare. -
The Rebound Effect in a More Fuel Efficient Transportation Sector
Vehicle fuel efficiency improvements through Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, may lead owners of more fuel-efficient cars may be driving more as their fuel cost per mile travelled decreases. It’s called the “rebound effect” and it has significant policy implications.
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The Energy Paradox and the Future of Fuel Economy Regulation
Are the benefits of raising the fuel efficiency of America’s auto fleet greater than the costs? The answer may depend on whether or not there is an energy paradox.
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EPA Delays NSPS
The EPA has again delayed its proposal of New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) targeting greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. The agency passed a September settlement agreement deadline and has not set a date for the actual release.
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Letter to BOEM regarding options value
Currently, the federal government treats lease sales as a now-or-never decision. That’s an approach that leads to too many leases sold too quickly, at too low a price. Instead, BOEM should be waiting to sell these leases until the time is right—when they can get the highest possible price.
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Patience is a(n Economic) Virtue
Real Options, Natural Resources, and Offshore Oil
Consideration of real options is necessary to maximize economic return from non-renewable natural resource extraction. But ecisions over drilling are often framed as a now-or-never choice, so the option to wait (or “real option” value) is improperly treated in administrative processes that determine whether, when, and how offshore oil resources will be tapped.
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Launch of Energy Tax Breaks Wiki
Policy Integrity recently launched a wiki aimed at providing a better understanding of how energy sectors are subsidized by the tax code. The wiki will gather the expertise of lawyers, economists, tax professionals, and concerned citizens to catalog tax breaks received by the fossil and renewable energy industries.