ENCO 4362: U.S. Energy Policy and Regulation
2014 Spring
Instructor |
Michael Giberson (website) |
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michael.giberson @ ttu.edu |
Office |
BA W324 |
Office phone |
(806) 834-3161 |
Office hours |
MTWR 2:00-3:00 PM, F 12:00-1:00 PM, and by appointment . |
Class |
TR 12:30-1:50 PM, BA 029 |
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Latest Updates
April 3: The term paper writing assignment linked above has been updated to reflect new due dates. The finished draft is due at 6 PM on April 11, and the peer review responses will be due at 6 PM on April 18.
Also please do review the information in the email sent April 3rd at 3:34 PM, with important details on how to name your MS Word document when you turn it in, possible penalties, and other things.
April 1: Schedule for April has been adjusted slightly. Quiz #5 moved to April 10.
February 13: Links have been added above to the term paper assignment and the related guide to writing term papers. You'll want to read both items carefully.
January 31: A link to the End of Energy chapter summaries writing assignment has been posted above (and in the course outline at the relevant dates).
January 21: Page is still under development. Reading assignments listed through next few weeks.
Course Outline
ENCO 4362: U.S. Energy Policy and Regulation
2014 Spring
Please note that the course outline is subject to change before the semester begins and over the course of the semester. Any significant changes after the class begins will be noted above under "Latest Updates" and discussed in class.
Welcome |
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Introductions; On wishful thinking and public policy; Why have a public policy? |
Jan 16 |
(1) Introduction to energy policyTOPICS: Conservation, energy efficiency, rebound effect, Jevons Paradox, market failure, externalities, theories of regulation |
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Jan 21 |
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Jan 23 |
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Jan 28 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: "Not such a bright idea," The Economist, August 26, 2010. Tsao, et al., “Solid-state lighting: an energy-economics perspective,” Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 43 (2010). Malnick, "Retailers avoid ban on traditional light bulbs," The Telegraph, August 26, 2012. Crandall, “Policy Watch: Corporate Average Fuel Economy,” The Journal of Economic Perspectives, (1992) White House, "Driving Efficiency: Cutting Costs for Families at the Pump and Slashing Dependence on Oil," July 29, 2011, Washington DC. Wikipedia on William Stanley Jevons; Wikipedia on Jevons's book The Coal Question. |
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(2) Foundations for policy analysisTOPICS: More on market failure, public choice, Coasian bargaining |
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Jan 30 |
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Feb 4 |
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Feb 6 |
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Feb 11 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Mankiw, "Raise the Gas Tax," Wall Street Journal, October 20, 2006. Mankiw, "Smart Taxes: An Open Invitation to Join the Pigou Club," unpublished paper presented at Eastern Economic Association, March 2008. Joseph White, “American Idle: To Shorten Ever-Growing Commutes, Will Drivers Pay Money to Take Faster Lanes?” Wall Street Journal, Feb. 2, 2011. Lomansky, “Autonomy and Automobility,” Independent Review, (Summer 1997). Arthur Cecil Pigou in Concise Encyclopedia of Economics; Pigovian tax via Wikipedia. Ronald Coase in Concise Encyclopedia of Economics. |
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(3) Public Policy, Politicians, and the PublicTOPICS: Politics and public policy, public choice theory, voting, interest groups |
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Feb 13 |
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Feb 18 |
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Feb 20 |
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Feb 25 |
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Feb 27 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Texas Politics-Interest Groups, "4.1. How interest groups form," and "4.2. Concentrated benefits vs. diffuse costs." Yandle, "Bootleggers and Baptists in Retrospect," Regulation, Vol. 22:3 (1999). Growth Energy, "Ethanol Policy Brief," Revised November 16, 2010. Drum, “Ethanol Subsidies: Not Gone, Just Hidden a Little Better,” Mother Jones online (January 5, 2012). |
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(4) Bureaucracy and public policyTOPICS: Politics and public policy, Public interest theory of regulation, Interest group theory of regulation, Capture theory of regulation, Rent Seeking |
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Mar 4 |
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Mar 6 |
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Mar 11 |
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Mar 13 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Tullock, "The origin of the rent-seeking concept," International Journal of Business and Economics (2003). Tullock, "The fundamentals of rent-seeking," The Locke Luminary (Winter 1998). Institute for Justice, "The Road to the Supreme Court," Sep. 23, 2011 (video). Crandall, "Ackerman and Hassler's Clean Air/Dirty Coal," The Bell Journal of Economics (Autumn, 1981) |
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(5) Benefit-Cost Analysis and regulatory analysisTOPICS: Benefit-cost analysis, discounting, non-use value, life-cycle analysis |
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Mar 25 |
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Mar 27 |
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Apr 1 |
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Apr 3 |
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Apr 8 |
TERM PAPER ASSIGNMENT (TASK 3): Your finished draft is due by email at 6 PM on April 11. |
Apr 10 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Opposing Views: "Should the U.S. Allow Offshore Oil Drilling?" (2008). BP's Internal Investigation webpage on the Deepwater Horizon accident with links to reports, video, and other materials. Krupnick, Campbell, Cohen and Parry, "Understanding the Costs and Benefits of Deepwater Oil Drilling Regulation," RFF Discussion Paper (Jan 2011). |
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(6) Federalism in energy policyTOPICS: Federalism, jurisdictional competition, state and local conflict |
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Apr 15 |
TERM PAPER ASSIGNMENT (TASK 4): Peer review responses due by email 6 PM on April 18. |
Apr 17 |
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Apr 22 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Goho, "Municipalities and Hydraulic Fracturing: Trends in State Preeumption," Planning & Environmental Law, July 2012. Pless, "Natural Gas Development and Hydraulic Fracturing: A Policymaker's Guide," National Conference of State Legislatures, Revised June 2012. "Local Actions Against Fracking," Food & Water Watch Fracking Action Center website. |
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(2) Current TopicsTOPICS: Xxxxx |
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Apr 24 |
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Apr 29 |
TERM PAPER ASSIGNMENT (TASK 5): Your term paper is due by email at midnight on May 4. |
May 1 |
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May 6 |
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: |
Final Exam will be held Tuesday, May 13, 1:30 PM - 4:00 PM.
Syllabus
ENCO 4362: U.S. Energy Policy and Regulation
2014 Spring
Course description
The course will examine U.S. government policy and regulation affecting the energy industry and energy consumers with a focus on the policy making process and the methods of policy analysis.
Course materials
· Michael J. Graetz, The End of Energy, MIT Press (2011).
· Susan Dudley and Jerry Brito, Regulation: A Primer 2nd Ed., Mercatus/GWURSC (2012).
· Additional readings will be available online via links on this class website.
Both books are available from Amazon and other sources online. You may obtain the hardback, paperback, or electronic version of the Graetz book; all will work. Graetz's book is available electronically throught the TTU library. An electronic version of the Dudley and Brito primer is available free at this link.
Expected learning outcomes
After completing this course, students will be able to:
- Discuss select current energy policy issues, identify typical perspectives on these issues, and describe how proposed policies may affect energy use;
- Identify basic concepts of public policy analysis and explain generally accepted justifications for policy intervention;
- Describe the cost-benefit approach to evaluation of public policy toward energy resources, including the role of cost-benefit analysis and limits of the approach;
- Discuss the use of quantity mandates, price controls, cap-and-trade, pollution taxes, and other approaches to regulation; and
- Explain the rationale behind ‘market-based approaches’ to regulation.
Methods of assessing outcomes
The expected learning outcomes will be assessed by review of class participation, quizzes, writing assignments and performance on the final exam.
Class participation/Present and Prepared: Students are expected to come to class prepared and contribute to class discussions and other activities. Class participation grade will be determined via the "Present and Prepared" policy as explained below.
Section quizzes: Quizzes on the readings will be given about 7 times during the semester (the five best quiz grades will be used).
Writing assignment - The End of Energy: We will read Michael Graetz's book on U.S. energy policy, The End of Energy. Each student must turn in chapter summaries on the due dates noted in the course outline online.
Writing assignments - Term paper: Each student must research and write a term paper on an issue of current interest in U.S. energy policy or regulation. Additional details on the requirement will be presented during the semester.
Final exam: Test scheduled for 1:30 PM, Tuesday, May 14.
Grading
This course has a total of 100 points available, allocated as letter grades in the following manner:
• A (Excellent) | 90 – 100 |
• B (Good) | 80 – 89.9 |
• C (Average) | 70 – 79.9 |
• D (Inferior) | 60 – 69.9 |
• F (Failure) | 0 – 59.9 |
Your overall course average will be rounded up to the nearest tenth of a point. (An average fractionally above an 89.9 will become an A, but at an average of exactly 89.9 or below will be a B. Similarly at the grade boundaries at 79.9, 69.9, and 59.9. I may adjust the dividing lines between letter grades modestly if it makes sense to do so.)
Points toward your course average are available as follows:
• Class participation | 11% |
• Section quizzes | 25% |
• Chapter summaries | 14% |
• Term paper | 25% |
• Final exam | 25% |
Additional class policies
In general, the class will follow standard university policies as described in the Texas Tech University Operating Policies (http://www.depts.ttu.edu/opmanual/). In addition, please note:
Academic honesty: It is the aim of the faculty of Texas Tech University to foster a spirit of complete honesty and a high standard of integrity. The attempt of students to present as their own any work that they have not honestly performed is regarded by the faculty and administration as a serious offense and renders the offenders liable to serious consequences, possibly suspension.
Attendance: In general, I expect
that you will be in class and assume that if you choose not to
be in class it is for good reason. As you are an adult and
responsible for your own choices with respect to the use of your
time, you do not need my permission to miss class. You also do
not need to present me with doctor’s notes in the event of an
illness. However, please do contact me if an illness will keep
you from attending multiple classes.
A student who will miss class due to a university-approved trip, recruiting trip or interview, or to observe a religious holy day should make that intention miss class known to the instructor via email prior to the absence so that accommodations can be made in accordance with university policies.
When you miss class, it is your responsibility to catch up or cover missing materials or assignments. The class website and your fellow students should be your first recourse in such cases, not your instructor
Disabilities: Any student who, because of a disability, may require some special arrangements in order to meet course requirements should contact the instructor to request necessary accommodations.
Present and Prepared: Students will gain the most from class
periods - and their classmates, too - if they come to class
prepared. At the beginning of most classes this semester, a
class roll will be circulated for students to sign in on.
The base class participation score is determined as follows: If you sign in as "present and prepared" at least 85 percent of the time, you will earn all 11 class participation points. If counted present and prepared fewer than 85 percent of the time, you'll earn fewer class participation points. (From 80-85 percent, then 10 points; if 75-80 percent, then 9; if 70-75 percent, then 8. If counted "present and prepared" fewer than 70 percent of the time, you will obtain 6 or fewer points.)
This base class participation score may be increased for students making particularly strong in-class contributions over the semester. This base score may be reduced for students who frequently demonstrate a lack of preparation or otherwise fail to participate in class.
Syllabus and course outline changes: The instructor may adjust the syllabus or course outline during the course of the semester. Updated versions of the syllabus and course outline will be maintained on the class website (http://giberson.ba.ttu.edu/ENCO4362). Note in particular that the "present and prepared" policy is new in my classes this semester and some adjustments may be made. Any adjustments will be noted in class and on this website.