Think Tanks Urge Energy Overhaul

Raising $25 billion annually in new energy-related federal funding is among key recommendations in a new energy policy report prepared and released last week by three national think tanks with a history of opposition to one another. The American Enterprise Institute, the Brookings Institution, and the Breakthrough Institute argue that the failure to pass national greenhouse gas cap-and-trade legislation this year should be seen as an opportunity to “reset the button” on energy policy. The report recommends a greater national focus on R&D priorities to encourage development of renewable energy sources and nuclear power. The new funds would be used to enlarge several energy research programs in the Departments of Energy and Defense as well as to fund energy-related educational programs. The report says that the new funds could be generated by a “very small” $5.00-per-ton price on carbon emissions, a small fee on imported oil, a rejiggering of industry subsidies, and an end to fossil-fuel tax breaks. The report criticizes the politics of the right and the left for failing to realistically address energy needs.