Renewable Energy Politics: Policy Typologies, Policy Tools, and State Deployment of Renewables

The competing forces driving the development of renewable energy in the American states are investigated. A framework of state renewable energy politics is investigated by the authors, and a set of hypotheses regarding the role of politics, policies, and prices in renewable energy development is developed. These hypotheses are tested with a fixed effect vector decomposition model using a panel data set for the U.S. states from 1990 to 2008. Renewable energy development is influenced by regulatory institutions, as indicated by the results, accompanied by the effects of various policy instruments, as well as the party affiliations of the governor and legislators, and the professionalism of the legislature.

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