Energy and Natural Resources
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CBO periodically publishes a reference volume, often referred to as “Budget Options,” that includes dozens of policy options to reduce federal budget deficits. Those options are derived from a broad spectrum of sources and represent a range of ways to reduce spending or increase revenues. The options are illustrative, and CBO’s reports do not make recommendations. CBO also prepares analytic reports that examine specific federal programs, aspects of the tax code, and budgetary and economic challenges. Most of these reports present a set of options for changes in the programs or tax rules being examined. A list of some recent reports with options related to this topic is below. Visit CBO’s Reports with Policy Options page for a list of all recent reports with policy options.
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Report
Options for Increasing Federal Income From Crude Oil and Natural Gas on Federal Lands
April 19, 2016In this report, CBO analyzes how the government manages access to oil and natural gas on federal lands and eight policy options that could modestly increase federal income from oil and gas leasing without significantly reducing production.
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Report
Federal Policies and Innovation
November 17, 2014The federal government influences innovation through two broad channels: spending and tax policies, and the legal and regulatory systems. Policymakers have a number of options for spurring additional innovation.
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Report
The Renewable Fuel Standard: Issues for 2014 and Beyond
June 26, 2014Using the rising amounts of renewable transportation fuels required by the Renewable Fuel Standard will be difficult. CBO looks at how those requirements and alternatives would affect fuel and food prices and greenhouse gas emissions.
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Report
Border Adjustments for Economywide Policies That Impose a Price on Greenhouse Gas Emissions
December 19, 2013A carbon tax or cap-and-trade program could make emission-intensive U.S. products less competitive and increase emissions overseas. Import tariffs related to emissions could reduce those effects but would be hard to implement.
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Effects of a Carbon Tax on the Economy and the Environment
May 22, 2013A carbon tax’s effect on the economy depends on how lawmakers would use revenues generated by the tax. The tax would help reduce U.S. emissions but would have only a modest effect on the Earth’s climate without a worldwide effort.
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Effects of Federal Tax Credits for the Purchase of Electric Vehicles
September 20, 2012CBO’s report assesses how the credits affect the relative cost of owning an electric vehicle, and how cost-effectively the credits reduce gasoline consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
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Federal Efforts to Reduce the Cost of Capturing and Storing Carbon Dioxide
June 28, 2012CBO’s analysis suggests that the projected high cost of using CCS means that current federal programs are unlikely to support widespread use of the technology. The study discusses several other options that lawmakers might consider.
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Energy Security in the United States
May 9, 2012Improving energy security—the ability of U.S. households and businesses to accommodate disruptions of supply in energy markets—requires considering policies related to the nation’s supply of and demand for oil.
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Deforestation and Greenhouse Gases
January 6, 2012Human activities produce large amounts of greenhouse gases (GHGs), primarily carbon dioxide (CO2), and thus contribute to global warming.