Open AccessGlobal Warming Policy: A Public Finance Perspective
Author(s) -
James M. Poterba
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
the journal of economic perspectives/the journal of economic perspectives
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 9.614
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1944-7965
pISSN - 0895-3309
DOI - 10.1257/jep.7.4.47
Subject(s) - greenhouse gas , subsidy , presumption , economics , deforestation (computer science) , natural resource economics , public finance , carbon finance , fossil fuel , public economics , economic policy , finance , macroeconomics , political science , market economy , ecology , computer science , law , biology , programming language
In the last few years, a substantial volume of research has considered the design of taxes to slow greenhouse gas emissions as well as the economic effects of such policies. In this paper, I summarize the insights that have emerged from this work. I begin by explaining that while efficiency considerations create a presumption for using coordinated international policies to alter greenhouse gas emissions, the prospects for such action are bleak. Then I focus on the public finance of carbon taxes at the national level, considering the design of such taxes as well as their incidence across and within nations. Next, I focus on greenhouse gas emission policies that could be enacted in less-developed countries, such as the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies and other policies to slow deforestation. Finally I suggest several promising directions for future study.