Uber and other apps for e-hailing taxis have transformed the taxi business in recent years. However, to date, U.S. regulators have not been especially innovative in responding to the emergence of Uber and the other apps. This article analyzes what taxi regulators should be doing in the age of taxi apps, for both e-hailed taxis […]
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The Paris Agreement cemented a new framework for global climate policy based on the voluntary and non-legally binding emission reduction actions by both developed and developing countries. The building blocks strategy for climate action discussed in this Special Issue is well adapted to and strongly complements this new structure. Building blocks focus on multiple transnational
Building Blocks: A Strategy for Near-Term Climate Action Read More »
The boundary between state and federal authority over the electricity sector is in flux. A host of new technologies is rapidly changing how electricity is generated and consumed. At the same time, state and federal regulators are adopting novel laws and regulations to cope with these changes and to address other priorities, such as reducing
The FPA and the Private Right to Preempt Read More »
This article examines the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission v. Electric Power Supply Association. It argues that the decision represents a deeply functional and pragmatic approach to the Federal Power Act. That approach, it concludes, represents a promising development for the future of electricity regulation, especially for programs such as net metering and
FERC v. EPSA: Functionalism and the Electricity Industry of the Future Read More »
For many Small Island Developing States (SIDS) the cost of producing electricity from imported fossil fuels is so high and the cost of renewable energy technology has fallen so significantly that transitioning towards renewable energy is likely to produce cost savings. A recent workshop at NYU School of Law, which brought together SIDS utility representatives
On February 24, the Supreme Court will hear oral argument in Hughes v. Talen Energy Marketing. In deciding this case, the Court must determine whether an effort by the State of Maryland to incentivize the construction of new power plants is field preempted by the Federal Power Act (“FPA”)—that is, whether the Maryland law intrudes on an
FPA Preemption in the 21st Century Read More »
The composition of utility revenues under performance-based regulation depends on the approach used to set base revenue allowances and the magnitude of financial performance incentives. For the most policy-responsive regime, regulators should pursue ‘integrated PBR’ by both broadening the set of performance incentives they offer and embracing benchmarking for base revenue allowances. Published in: The Electricity Journal (2015)
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This article presents an innovative institutional approach to supplement and ultimately strengthen the lagging United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) process for negotiating a climate treaty that commits major emitting and developed countries to greenhouse gas emissions limitations. The Durban Platform for Enhanced Action does not aim to have such a treaty before
Building Blocks for Global Climate Protection Read More »
This essay proposes an innovative institutional strategy for global climate protection, quite distinct from but ultimately complementary to the UNFCCC climate treaty negotiations. Our “building block” strategy relies on a variety of smaller-scale transnational cooperative arrangements, involving not only states, but also sub-national jurisdictions, firms, and civil society organizations, to undertake activities whose primary goal
A New Strategy for Global Climate Protection Read More »
