What does the U.S. Government really spend on energy?

Uday Varadarajan, March 2012

 

Federal energy incentives such as tax breaks and loan programs are the subject of vigorous public debate. This attention is at least in part due to the politics surrounding the failure of the solar manufacturer Solyndra (which received a $500 million government loan), the cost to government of tax incentives for oil and gas production when industry profits are at all-time-highs, and the level of government debt. However, the debate is also a part of a broader national conversation about the appropriate role of government – and in particular about the role of the federal government in the supply and use of energy.

This role is of particular interest to us here at CPI: energy generation and use in the U.S. is responsible for the lion’s share (87%) of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions which contribute to global climate change. We’re interested in how federal policy is influencing these emissions, and how well it’s working.

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Renewables and the U.S. Defense Department

Uday Varadarajan, February 2012

 

The American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE)’s webinar last month on Security, Sustainability, and Renewables was the latest in a series of recent renewable energy policy discussions to highlight growing interest in the emerging opportunities for the renewable sector to work with the U.S. military. Interest in military applications of renewables have risen at least in part due to federal policy uncertainty. The impending expiration of several renewables incentives (such as the Recovery Act’s tax grant program and the production tax credit for wind) along with the budget constraints arising from the political impasse over government spending and debt suggest the real possiblity of significantly lower direct federal government support for renewable technology R&D and deployment. As a result, there is growing interest in looking for ways to improve the efficiency of existing renewable policies as well as looking for opportunities for hedging against possible removal of support (see for example, the work of the Bipartisan Policy Center on more efficient subsidies for renewables).

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