Chapter 24: Taxes Versus Standards: Policies for the Reduction of Gasoline Consumption

Sarah E. West

Taxes versus standards: Policies for the reduction of gasoline consumption Fossil fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from the personal transportation sector promise to be key challenges facing the next generation of policy makers. In 1999, transportation became the largest end-use producer of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels in the United States. Gasoline-powered vehicles are responsible for about 60% of the carbon from the transportation sector. They also emit the majority of carbon monoxide, as well as substantial proportions of oxides of nitrogen and volatile organic compounds (Davis, 2004). The transportation sector became the largest producer of carbon dioxide for two reasons. First, with the exception of 2007 and 2008, when gas prices reached new highs and the U.S. economy slumped into recession, households increased the number of miles they drove (Federal Highway Administration, 2009). Second, the vehicle fleet has become less fuel efficient so that in 2005, households on ...

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