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Oil Tax, Natural Gas Tax Reduction Among New Policy Proposals

Five policy changes would be simple and feasible ways to reduce emissions and dependence on foreign oil.

That’s according to a proposal by the National Energy Policy Institute at the University of Tulsa. One of the report’s authors is journalist Charles Wohlforth.

“What it really is,” he explains, “is a demonstration that there are policies out there that are ready to be adopted that are low-cost and will have a big impact on these issues.”

“So there’s no excuse to say it’s too expensive, or the technology’s too expensive,” he said.

From the report, the five recommendations:

The five elements in our package of policies are: • NEPI Clean Energy Standard: Establishes a 2035 goal for clean electrical generation and requires technology-neutral, market-driven decisions by utilities to use low-carbon and renewable fuels to achieve this target. • Oil security dividend: Imposes a modest, graduated oil products tax that is fully rebated through the tax system to the public. • Automotive fuel economy: Follows the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards as adopted in 2012, and considers an alternative ‘feebate’ mechanism with similar impact and potential advantages. • LNG trucks: Provides a temporary fuel tax reduction to encourage the nascent shift in the heavy truck market from diesel to liquefied natural gas (LNG). • Energy efficiency: Extends existing incentives for energy-saving appliances and building codes and home-based renewable energy.