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A Tax-Cut Auction for the Environment: How and why to auction CO2 emissions permits
Abstract
An auction of carbon permits is the best way to achieve carbon caps set by
international negotiation to limit global climate change. To minimize administrative costs, permits would be required at the level of oil refineries, natural gas pipe lines, liquid sellers, and coal processing plants. To maximize liquidity in secondary markets, permits would be fully tradable and bankable. The government would conduct quarterly auctions. A standard ascending-clock auction in which price is gradually raised until there is no excess demand
would provide reliable price discovery. An auction is preferred to grandfathering (giving polluters permits in proportion to past pollution), because it allows reduced tax distortions, provides more flexibility in distribution of costs, provides greater incentives for innovation,
and reduces the need for politically contentious arguments over the allocation of rents.
Citation
Cramton, Peter and Suzi Kerr. 1998. "A Tax-Cut Auction for the Environment: How and why to auction CO2 emissions permits," Resources for the Future Discussion Paper 98-34.
Motu code: MYS0003
JEL codes: Q3, D4