Clean and Renewable Energy Standards: Options and Objectives

During his 25 January 2011 State of the Union speech, President Obama proposed a Clean Energy Standard (CES) policy framework that would result in 80% of U.S. electricity generation coming from “clean energy” sources by 2035. “Clean energy,” as described by President Obama, would include renewables, nuclear power and partial credits for clean coal and efficient natural gas. This book examines the design elements of previous CES proposals, summarizes the Administration’s CES policy framework, provides state-level baseline CES compliance analysis, and presents several policy options that Congress might consider as part of a CES debate.