Who Pays a Price on Carbon?

Corbett Grainger and Charles Kolstad

No 15239, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We use the 2003 Consumer Expenditure Survey and emissions estimates from an input-output model to estimate the incidence of a price on carbon induced by a cap-and-trade program or carbon tax in the US context. We present results on how much difference income deciles pay for a carbon tax as well as which industries see the largest increase in costs due to a carbon tax. We illustrate the main determinant of the regressivity: consumption patterns for energy-intensive goods. We find that a policy targeting CO2 from energy consumption is more regressive than a price on all emissions. Furthermore, on a per-capita basis a carbon price is much more regressive than calculations at the household level. We discuss policy options to offset the adverse distributional effects of a carbon emissions policy.

JEL-codes: H22 Q43 Q5 Q52 Q53 Q54 Q58 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2009-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene, nep-env and nep-mic
Note: EEE
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (41)

Published as Corbett Grainger & Charles Kolstad, 2010. "Who Pays a Price on Carbon?," Environmental & Resource Economics, European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 46(3), pages 359-376, July.

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Journal Article: Who Pays a Price on Carbon? (2010)
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