Energy Policy

October 31 - To help voters better understand the fiscal implications of the candidates' campaign proposals, CRFB released four reports this week:

• Guide to Social Security: The 2008 Presidential Election
• Guide to Stimulus Proposals: The 2008 Presidential Election
• Guide to Health Care: The 2008 Presidential Election
• Guide to Tax Policy: The 2008 Presidential Election

In addition, CRFB released a special health care update to its voter guide: "Promises, Promises: A Fiscal Voter Guide to the 2008 Election".

September 11 - According to a recent article in Bloomberg, John McCain's plan to create 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030 would cost power plant producers roughly $315 billion - around $15 billion a year - with taxpayers bearing much of the financial risk. The article explains that the key to encouraging the development of these plants is federal government loan guarantees. However, according to a 2003 Congressional Budget Office report, the default rate on nuclear construction debts could be as much as 50 percent.

These loan guarantees could be financed through revenue from auctioning emissions permits in a carbon cap-and trade system. Such a system could raise between $50 billion and $300 billion a year, according to CBO. However, the McCain campaign has said it would only auction a small portion of permits, in the range of $5 billion a year.

August 29 - Last night at the Democratic National Convention, Senator Barack Obama proposed $547 billion in annual spending increases and tax cuts, according to an anaysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Among these proposals included $394 billion from cutting taxes for 95% of Americans, $13 billion in corporate tax cuts, $15 billion in spending on green technology, $40 billion for education, $65 billion for healthcare, and $20 billion for expanding the military. While the Senator did suggest policies which could reduce this gap by $200 billion to $250 billion, CRFB President Maya MacGuineas remarked that:

"As the country faces daunting fiscal challenges from large deficits to trillion-dollar long-term imbalances, it is critical that the presidential candidates present the country with credible plans to improve the situation, rather than a long list of policies that would continue our dependency of borrowing from our children"