Energy policy in the U.S. : politics, challenges, and prospects for change

317 Pages·2011·3.91 MB·English

by  Laurance R Geri, David E McNabb

Government & Education GG
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Whether we are in a time of increasing energy costs or a time of cheap, abundant energy, ii

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the policies that control the sources, availability, distribution and use of energy produce

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effects that impact our daily lives, especially the highly consumptive American way
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of life. We rely on cheap energy, yet we also have to consider the high environmental NN
costs. In an effort to provide greater awareness of the necessary policy decisions facing aa
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our elected and appointed officials, Energy Policy in the U.S.: Politics, Challenges,
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and Prospects for Change presents an overview of important energy policies and the
policy process in the United States, including their history, goals, methods of action,
and consequences.
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In the first half of the book, the authors frame the energy policy issue by reviewing U.S. n
energy policy history, identifying the policy-making players, and illuminating the costs,
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benefits, and economic and political realities of currently competing policy alternatives.
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The book examines the stakeholders and their attempts to influence energy policy
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and addresses the role of supply and demand on the national commitment to energy
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conservation and the development of alternative energy sources.

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The latter half of the book delves into specific energy policy strategies, including
economic and regulatory options, and factors that influence energy policies, such as o
the importance of international cooperation. Renewed interest in various renewable l
and nontraditional energy resources—for example, hydrogen, nuclear fusion, biomass, i
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and tide motion—is examined, and policy agendas are explored in view of scientific,
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economic, regulatory, production, and environmental constraints. This book provides

excellent insight into the complex task of creating a comprehensive energy policy and its
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importance in the continued availability of energy to power our way of life and economy n
while protecting our environment and national security.

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K11950
ISBN: 978-1-4398-4189-1
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K11950 cvr mech.indd 1 5/11/11 4:59 PM
Energy Policy
in the U.S.
Politics, Challenges, and Prospects for Change
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC POLICY
A Comprehensive Publication Program
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
EVAN M. BERMAN
Distinguished University Professor
J. William Fulbright Distinguished Scholar
National Chengchi University
Taipei, Taiwan
Founding Editor
JACK RABIN
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Energy Policy
in the U.S.
Politics, Challenges, and Prospects for Change
Laurance R. Geri
David E. McNabb
CRC Press
Taylor & Francis Group
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Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742
© 2011 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
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Contents
List of Boxes ........................................................................................................................xv
List of Figures ...................................................................................................................xvii
List of Tables ......................................................................................................................xix
Preface ................................................................................................................................xxi
Acknowledgments ...........................................................................................................xxiii
About the Authors .............................................................................................................xxv
Introduction ....................................................................................................................xxvii
What Is Energy? ...........................................................................................................xxviii
Structure of the Energy Industry ..................................................................................xxviii
Stakeholders in the Energy Policy Network ....................................................................xxix
What Actions Should We Take? ......................................................................................xxxi
Purpose for the Book .....................................................................................................xxxii
Why an Energy Policy Is Important .............................................................................xxxiii
Energy and Economic Growth ...........................................................................xxxiii
Energy Policy and Public Opinion .....................................................................xxxiv
Structure of the Book ...................................................................................................xxxiv
Part 1: The Challenges in Crafting U.S. Energy Policy .......................................xxxiv
Part 2: Policies for Energy Transition ..................................................................xxxvi
Part 1 tHE CHaLLENGES IN CraFtING U.S. ENErGY POLICY
1 The Political Realities of Energy Policy .......................................................................3
Demystifying Energy Policy ...............................................................................................4
An Example: Coal, from Mine to Furnace ..........................................................................4
A Good Fuel for Generating Electricity ....................................................................6
A Big Footprint ........................................................................................................7
The Rankine Cycle Process .......................................................................................7
Understanding the Scale of Energy .....................................................................................8
Conversion Processes Needed ..................................................................................9
Why Worry about These Conversions? .....................................................................9
The Economic Perspective .......................................................................................11
The Function of Energy Policy .........................................................................................12
vii
viii  ◾  Contents
Unexpected Influence of Nonenergy Policies ...........................................................13
Why Does the United States Use so Much Energy? ...........................................................14
Factors Influencing U.S. Energy Use .......................................................................16
Sources of Our Preferences ......................................................................................17
Encouraging Energy Trends ....................................................................................18
The U.S. Energy Sector .....................................................................................................18
Energy in Contemporary Society ............................................................................19
Energy as a Business ................................................................................................19
Public Utilities .......................................................................................................20
Need for a New Business Model .............................................................................21
Energy in Commerce and Industry ...................................................................................21
Energy and the Consumer ................................................................................................22
Help for Low-Income Families ...............................................................................22
Energy and Agriculture ....................................................................................................23
Conclusion: Energy out of Balance...................................................................................24
2 Energy Policy in Transition ........................................................................................25
Early Climate Research ....................................................................................................26
The Threat of Climate Change ...............................................................................28
Forecasts, Energy, and Creating the Future .......................................................................28
Why Forecasts Are Necessary .................................................................................29
New Planning Tools ...............................................................................................30
Confusion over Peak Oil ..................................................................................................30
Lower Amounts Predicted .......................................................................................33
Transitioning from Peak Production .................................................................................34
Climate Change: Challenges and Policy Goals ..................................................................35
High GHG Emissions Levels Continue .................................................................37
The Challenge; the Response ............................................................................................37
A Supreme Challenge .............................................................................................37
Who Is Responsible? ..............................................................................................38
Thinking in Wedges .........................................................................................................39
The Stern Review and Its Aftermath ..................................................................................40
The Social Cost of Carbon ...............................................................................................40
Why the Discrepancy? ............................................................................................41
The Ethics Question ...............................................................................................41
The Equity Question...............................................................................................41
The Carbon Price Debate ..................................................................................................41
Arcane Issues with Global Ramifications ..........................................................................42
How High to Price Carbon? ...................................................................................43
Conclusion: Climate Implications for Energy Policy ........................................................43
3 The Art and Science of Crafting Public Policy ...........................................................45
Policy Making in Action ....................................................................................................45
The Evolution of U.S. Political Culture .............................................................................47
A New Conception of the State..............................................................................48
Emerging Themes ..................................................................................................49
Congress and Its Influence on Policy ................................................................................49
Contents  ◾  ix
The Battle for Control............................................................................................50
Pluralism, Elites, Triangles, and Networks ........................................................................50
The Role of Technical Experts in Policy Making ......................................................51
Shifting Models of Government Power ..............................................................................51
A New Approach: The Policy Network ....................................................................51
Two Additional Policy Models ................................................................................52
The Multiple Streams Framework ..............................................................52
Policy Design and Social Construction ......................................................53
Constructions Are Not Fixed .................................................................................54
The System: Weakened, but Still Functioning—for Now .................................................54
Framing the Energy Policy Issue .......................................................................................54
Worrisome Trends ...................................................................................................55
Visible Lack of Consensus ......................................................................................56
A More Divisive Nation .........................................................................................56
Subtext of the Framing Issue ..................................................................................56
A Glimmer of Optimism ........................................................................................57
Hard to Generate Citizen Involvement ...................................................................57
Needed: A New Way of Thinking about Policy ..................................................................57
Occurring at the Local Level ..................................................................................58
The U.S. Policy Space: Today and the Near Tomorrow .....................................................58
Meeting the Needs of an Aging Society ..................................................................58
Structural Deficits and Entitlements .......................................................................59
A Shifting U.S. Economy .......................................................................................60
Conclusion: A Rough Terrain Ahead .................................................................................61
4 The Long Search for a Sustainable Energy Policy ......................................................63
The History of U.S. Energy Policy since 1945 ..................................................................64
1945 to 1970: Managing an Energy Surplus ....................................................................64
1971 to 1980: Coping with Energy Shortages ...................................................................65
1981 to 1990: Deregulating the Industry ..........................................................................67
1991 to 1999: Calls for a Comprehensive Energy Policy ..................................................68
2000 to 2002: Linking Energy and National Security ......................................................69
War, Politics, and Energy Security ..........................................................................70
2003 to 2007: A Comprehensive Energy Policy Finally Emerges ......................................72
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 ...............................................................................72
Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 .....................................................75
New CAFE Standards ............................................................................................77
2008 to 2009: A Renewed Call for Energy Independence ................................................78
2010 and Beyond: Energy Efficiency, Conservation, and the Environment ......................78
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) ........................................79
The Evolution of Fuel Efficiency Standards ............................................................80
Conclusion: A History of Crisis and Change ..........................................................81
5 Difficulties in Achieving a Balanced Energy Policy ...................................................83
Why Intervene in Energy? ................................................................................................84
The Principal-Agent Problem ..................................................................................85
Multiple Stakeholders .......................................................................................................86