Common Resources

Common Resources

• Blog Post

  Ninety-Six Regulatory Experts Express Concerns about Trump Administration Reforms

  May 24, 2017 | Joshua Linn, Alan J. Krupnick
  Environmental Economics Topics

  The Trump administration’s executive orders and guidance on regulatory reform seem to place an outsized focus on costs. We joined 94 economists and lawyers to offer constructive suggestions for improving regulatory analysis and implementation.

• Blog Post

  Respectability Looming for Expert Judgment

  May 22, 2017 | Roger M. Cooke
  Risk and Uncertainty

  Expert judgment is becoming respectable, as demonstrated by several recent indicators.

• Blog Post

  Local Revenue Volatility and Oil and Gas Development in Texas

  May 17, 2017 | Daniel Raimi
  Energy and Electricity

  Current and proposed policies in Texas make it difficult for local governments to set property tax rates that best suit their needs, as well as discourage oil and gas investment during periods of low oil prices, when the economy could use a boost.

• Blog Post

  Three Revisions Not to Overlook in California’s New Cap-and-Trade Proposal, SB 775

  May 10, 2017 | Dallas Burtraw
  Climate Change

  California’s cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions requires adjustments for political and legal reasons. Design changes to three fundamental aspects are crucial to the success of the market: banking, offsets, and the border adjustment.

• Blog Post

  A Path Forward for the Social Cost of Carbon

  May 10, 2017 | Casey J. Wichman
  Climate Change

  Considering Trump’s rollbacks of US climate-related policies, applying the best available science to estimate the social cost of carbon and assess the impact of carbon dioxide emissions will require significant effort from the broader research community.

• Blog Post

  RFF on the Issues: Effective Flood Damage Repair and Risk Reduction

  May 5, 2017 | Carolyn Kousky, Leonard A. Shabman
  Risk and Uncertainty

  Heavy rains have led to extreme flooding in Missouri, causing road closures, property damage, and fatalities. Rain continues, and with it come added costs and disruption.

• Blog Post

  Reducing the Costs of US Fuel Economy and Emissions Standards

  May 4, 2017 | Benjamin Leard, Joshua Linn, Virginia McConnell
  Transportation

  The Trump administration’s review of fuel economy standards should be fully coordinated between the two agencies enforcing the regulations—and should focus on making the rules more consistent and cost-effective.

• Blog Post

  Air Quality Regulations Always Have Costs—Are They Worth It?

  May 3, 2017 | Daniel M. Sullivan
  Air Quality

  EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt has said we don't have to choose between the environment and jobs. However, environmental protections will always have economic costs. For air quality rules that may be rescinded by EPA, the measured benefits dwarf the costs.

• Blog Post

  How Much Would You Pay for a Self-Driving Car? A New Podcast with RFF’s Ben Leard

  May 2, 2017 | Peter Nelson, Benjamin Leard
  Transportation

  In a new podcast, RFF Fellow Benjamin Leard brings us up to speed on the current state of self-driving car technology and discusses his recent research into how much of a premium consumers are willing to pay for autonomous vehicles.

• Blog Post

  National Monument Reviews: All Politics or Fair and Balanced Assessments?

  May 1, 2017 | Margaret A. Walls
  Land Use

  Partisan politics motivated President Trump’s executive order to review national monument designations. How the government carries out the first assessment, of Bears Ears in Utah, will provide insight on its overall approach to these reviews.