GLOBAL SUBSIDIES INITIATIVE
Subsidy WatchIssue 6, November 2006
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Focus on Energy Subsidies
We know subsidies to the energy sector are large. The question is how large?
Also in this issue:
Commentary
Studies
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Readings
Open Budget Initiative
Nine in 10 countries surveyed by the Washington-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) fail to provide adequate information on their budgets needed to keep governments accountable to their citizens.
The CBPP's International Budget Project surveyed some 59 countries to assess the availability and quality of their budget documents. The results, released in October, find that most governments could do a better job of informing citizens about how they spend public funds.
Events
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Ethanol: Boon or Boondoggle?
8 Nov 2006, Washington, D.C., USA
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy notes that ethanol is being held up as a solution to a number of public policy concerns, including reducing conventional air pollutants, minimizing greenhouse-gas emissions, ending foreign oil dependency, reinvigorating the family farm, as well as a host of other ethanol-fueled dreams.
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An introduction to energy subsidies
By By Trevor Morgan, President, Menecon Consulting*
The recent surge in international energy prices has placed energy subsidies at the forefront of the economic policy agenda in many countries, particularly where government interventions are intended to keep prices low to households and industry, or to protect indigenous energy industries from foreign competition.
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Subsidies to biofuels: checking the bait
By By Ronald Steenblik, Director of Research, Global Subsidies Initiative
People invariably ask, given we have only recently started in this business, why did we choose to work on biofuels?
In deciding research priorities we have several criteria. One is that we would not try to duplicate the work of others. Another is that when we look into subsidies to a particular sector, the sector should be one that is subsidized by many countries. Third, we would give priority to examining subsidies that are likely to affect the development prospects of developing countries, or the environment, and especially if they affect both.
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