A Quick Economic Analysis of the EPA's Budget
Based on the data posted here, the EPA has had an annual nominal budget of roughly $8 billion dollars for each year from 1999 to 2016. Inflation adjusted, this does not look like Leviathan in action. In fact, the EPA's staffing has shrunk from its peak of 18,000 in 1999 to 15,000 recently.
The EPA's Leader Strives to Deliver "Regulatory Certainty"
Scott Pruitt is the new Chief of the EPA. In this piece, he is quoted as saying that his agency will deliver "regulatory certainty".
Interviewing the Next Generation of USC Students
At USC, I'm providing more time supplying public goods than I used to at my previous university post. Yesterday, I spent three hours interviewing high school students who have already been accepted into USC and now are competing to receive a full tuition paid merit scholarship.
Campus Free Speech as Product Differentiation: The University of Chicago versus Yale
My son is an outspoken young man who will apply to college soon. He is well aware that the University of Chicago is a fierce defender of free speech and intellectual debate while Yale and many of the top University of California campuses are not.
Bill Gates Wants to Introduce a Wedge Between the Marginal Product of Labor and the Marginal Product of Capital
Intermediate micro students have fallen in love with the following algebra; MK_k/r = MP_l/w . In English, the cost minimizing firm should purchase robots until the extra output it produces per dollar spent on robots equals the extra output it produces per dollar spent on labor.
Magic Johnson Offers a Test of Comparative Advantage
Michael Jordan is the GOAT on the court but he may be the goat in the front office. Steve Kerr was not the GOAT on the court but his coaching winning percentage is high.
Would Jim Morrison Recognize the New Venice Beach? Internet Billionaires Replace Bongs and Muscle
I live seven miles from Venice Beach. While there are still many eccentric people walking along the beach paths, the area is gentrifying as leading Internet Startups take root. The New York Times has written a great piece about Snap and its upcoming IPO that will mint many new super-rich people.
How Do Environmental Economists Know that the Social Cost of Carbon is $42 a Ton?
The National Academy of Sciences has released a brand new report that you can download here that has a definitive feel on stating the academic environmental economics' community consensus on the social cost of carbon.
Supply Side vs. Demand Side Solutions for Adapting to Climate Change: The Case of Mexico City Water
The NY Times has published an excellent piece about Mexico City's water challenge but a nuanced read of the piece reveals two key points. The piece ignores demand side management. The word "water price" does not appear in the long piece and no economists are cited.
My Recent Writing on Climate Economics
Here is my new piece about the Economic effects of California's AB32. Here is my Harvard Business Review piece that dusts off the Porter Hypothesis and applies its logic to corporate climate change adaptation.
How Do Skeptics Affect Our Collective Ability to Adapt to Climate Change?
Daxuan Zhao and I have just released a new NBER Working paper on climate change adaptation. Recall that climate change mitigation focuses on slowing down and even reducing our production of greenhouse gas emissions.
What Do Pureed Japanese Food and Climate Change Adaptation Have in Common?
Read this front page NY Times story about how Japan's restaurants are adjusting their menus to meet the demands of the large cohort of elderly Japanese eaters and then read my new NBER paper on endogenous innovation and climate change adaptation. Demand creates supply and consumer well being rises.
The Economics of One California Coastal Commission Ruling
Economists talk about trade-offs quite often. Read this case study about the Newport Beach Banning Ranch Development project. Here is the developer's webpage.
Will Pollution Increase During Mr. Trump's Presidency?
The NY Times provides a vague overview concerning Mr. Pruitt's first steps at EPA. Here I'd like to sketch out some key determinants of short run pollution dynamics. I will focus on the environmental accounting vocabulary of scale, composition and technique effects.
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Some Climate Adaptation Research Topics for Young Economists to Work On
Based on the updated webpage, it appears that President Trump's EPA is taking climate change adaptation seriously. I am not surprised because the President owns major pieces of land in many coastal cities.
