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Implementation of the Reformulated Gasoline Program
The Clean Air Act (CAA) was amended in 1990 requiring the sale of cleaner-burning reformulated gasoline (RFG) in the nine worst nonattainment areas. Since the program began on January 1, 1995, legislation has been introduced to delay or repeal the requirement. RFG must contain oxygenates and should result in a 15 percent reduction of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and air toxins. While the CAA was being debated, affected parties (e.g., automobile manufacturers, oil industry, and agricultural interests) did not agree on whether and how gasoline should be reformulated.
World Oil Production After Year 2000: Business As Usual or Crises?
Deficient productive capacity has not yet caused an oil crisis, but that does not mean it never will. Significant increases in world oil demand will have to be met primarily from Persian Gulf supplies. This is a region with a history of wars, illegal occupations, soups, revolutions, sabotage, terrorism, and oil embargoes. To these possibilities may be added growing Islamist movements with various antipathies to the West. If oil production were constrained, oil prices could rise abruptly along with adverse world economic repercussions. If the IEA and EIA are correct on the demand side, deficient world oil productive capacity could cause an oil crisis within 15 years and political disruptions in Saudi Arabia could cause one sooner. However, if the increases in world oil demand were more moderate, and there is long-term relative peace in the Middle East, with increasing foreign participation in upstream oil activities, a business as usual world oil demand and supply situation would be a likely scenario for much of the next century.
Tax Incentives for Alcohol Fuels
The blender's tax credits were specifically enacted to complement the excise tax exemptions, so as to help support farm incomes by finding another market for corn, sugar, and other agricultural products that are the basic raw materials for alcohol production. More recently, proponents of expanding the alcohol fuels tax incentives argue that they reduce smog and improve air quality.
Department of Energy Abolition? Implications for the Nuclear Weapons Program
This report considers how abolition might affect the U.S. nuclear weapons program. It provides background on the weapons program and the debate on what organization should control it; summarizes the debate over managing the program, including criticisms of DOE’s management and issues in deciding where to place the program, and presents four options for the weapons program. It considers pros and cons for each option. This report should be of value for understanding consequences of alternative organizational “homes” for the weapons program for those considering legislation to abolish DOE.
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