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TOPIC A
Are government subsidies encouraging development and use of alternative energy fuels (solar, wind, electric vehicles) good policy? |
BACKGROUND:
Rich Subsidies Powering Solar and Win Projects. The New York Times, November 11, 2011.
Describes how clean energy subsidies work and how extensive they have become in recent years. (NY Times site link here - same article but different title.)
Reforming Energy Subsidies (pdf). United Nations Environment Programme, 2008.
The section spanning pp. 8-19 gives background on subsidies.
Solyndra Highlights Long History of Energy Subsidies. NPR, November 16, 2011.
Government has played a role in energy investment through tax deductions, research grants and regulatory policies dating back to the days when timber was a major source of fuel.
YES:
What Would Jefferson Do? (pdf) DBL Investors, September 2011.
Jefferson would do what our country has
always done—support emerging energy technologies—to drive innovation, create jobs, protect our
environment, and enhance national security.
One Bad Energy Subsidy Expires. The New York Times, January 7, 2012.
Congress should end subsidies to Big Oil and redeploy the money to support new energy technologies like wind and solar. (NY Times site link here.)
NO:
No More Energy Subsidies. Heritage Foundation, July 26, 2011.
Energy industries should be freed from all government subsidies and special policy treatment that benefit certain industries at the expense of others.
Energy Subsidies Stymie Wind, Solar Innovation. Bloomberg, November 27, 2011.
Subsidies also reward inefficiency, cultivate dependency on government largess and promote a rush to manufacture before the hard work of perfecting a technology is done. |
