Research

Book

Tax Law and the Environment: A Multidisciplinary and Worldwide Perspective (Roberta Mann & Tracey Roberts, eds., Lexington Books, 2018). This edited volume provides a comparative and international perspective on environmental taxation in the contexts of environmental protection, energy, conservation, and climate change in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Australia, Asia and Europe.

Book Chapters

Subsidies and the Environment, in Policy Instruments in Environmental Law (Kenneth Richards & Josephine van Zeben, eds., Edward Elgar, 2020). This chapter describes the policy goals, economics, politics and conflicts that arise in the use of subsidies to support environmental priorities.

The World Trade Organization and Renewable Energy, in Tax Law and the Environment (Roberta Mann & Tracey Roberts, eds., Lexington Books, 2018). This chapter identifies institutional biases in the World Trade Organization agreements and dispute resolution process that undercut efficient environmental regulation.

The Constitutional Grounding for EnvironmentalTaxation in the United States in Aspectos constitucionales controvertidos de la tributación ambiental (Controversies in Constitutional Aspects of Environmental Taxation) (Rodolfo Salassa Boix, ed. 2017). This chapter discusses the basis in the U.S. Constitution for the federal use of Pigouvian taxes and subsidies to manage natural resources and protect the environment.

U.S. “Support” for Renewable Energy, in La protección ambiental a través del Derecho fiscal (Rodolfo Salassa Boix, ed., 2015). This chapter questions whether the U.S. provides any effective support for renewable energy, given design flaws in the tax credit system and fossil fuel subsidies that undercut their effectiveness.

Voluntary Standards, Certification and Labeling Systems: Enhancing Efficiency Through Trade of Entitlements, in Market Instruments and Sustainable Economy (Ana Yábar Sterling & Pedro M. Herrera eds., 2012). This chapter identifies voluntary standards, certification and labeling systems as one of the few nongovernmental institutions that substitute for government at each stage of the regulatory process and identifies their strengths and weaknesses as regulatory gap-fillers.

Articles

  

Stranded Assets and Efficient Pricing for RegulatedUtilities: A Federal Tax Solution, 11 Columb. J. Tax L. 39 (2019). Stranded assets are capitalized expenditures for business assets, the costs of which may no longer be recovered when changes in markets, technology, or regulations render the assets less competitive or force their premature retirement. This article critiques as inefficient and wasteful the current tax and energy policy of passing the returns to tax savings from accelerated depreciation through to consumers. It argues for a change in tax and regulatory rules that will eliminate waste and offset stranded assets claims by crediting regulated utilities with those tax savings and their returns.

Greenbacks for the Green New Deal, 17 Pitt. Tax Rev. 53 (2019).  The Green New Deal calls for the overhaul of our nation’s energy, transportation and manufacturing infrastructure, the conservation of fragile and threatened ecosystems, and the encouragement of sustainable farming practices. This article examines the candidates’ plans, describes the economics driving public investment in these resources, and clarifies the types of funding mechanisms that are likely to limit economic waste and encourage efficient outcomes as the country moves forward toward a carbon-neutral future.

Picking Winners and Losers: Examining theStructure of Tax Subsidies for the Energy Industry, 41 Colum. J. Envtl L. 63 (2016), republished in Environmental Taxation and the Law 225 (Janet E. Milne, ed. 2017). This article compares tax subsidies to fossil fuels and renewables energy resources, arguing that the different subsidy structures have disparate effects on marketability, liquidity, transaction costs, and risk, skewing market trajectories for investments.

Brackets: A Historical Perspective, 108 Nw. U. L. Rev. 925 (2014). This article examines the history of the graduated rates system in the income tax from 1913 to the present, connects changes to key events in the history of the United States, and contextualizes the debate associated with several recent proposals for reform, including “the millionaire surtax.” Available here.

The Rise of Rule 4 Institutions: VoluntaryStandards, Certification and Labeling Systems, 40 Ecology L. Q. 101 (2013). Drawing from Calabresi and Melamed’s Property Rules, Liability Rules and Inalienability Rules: One View of the Cathedral, this article identifies voluntary standards, certification and labeling systems as “Rule 4” institutions: systems that facilitate the trade of entitlements by lowering steep transaction and information costs. The article argues that when governments have adopted these systems, a reallocation of property rights may lead to more efficient outcomes. Available here.

Innovations in Governance: A Functional Typology ofPrivate Governance Institutions, 22 Duke Envtl L. & Pol’y Forum 67 (2011). This article develops a functional typology of private governance institutions based on the regulatory gap-filling role they play in response to market failures, government failures, collective action problems, and the challenge of funding public goods. The article underscores the importance of funding in effective regulation. Available here.

Mitigating the Distributional Impacts of ClimateChange Policy, 67 Wash. & Lee L. Rev. 209 (2010). This article examines the incidence of climate change proposals and argues that the optimal policy will capture greenhouse gas tax revenues or scarcity rents from a cap-and-trade system and use them to offset the distributional impacts through a refundable tax credit.  Available here.

Other Publications

Tax Relief for Domestic Violence Survivors, Domestic Violence Rep. 19 (Dec./Jan. 2017), updated and republished in 11:1 Fam. & Intimate Partner Violence Q. 49 (2018).

Web-Based Tools to Enhance Access to Legal Services, 9 Ga. B.J. 46 (Dec. 2003).

Greedy for the Needy (The Atlanta Associates’ Campaign for Legal Services): A Model for Associate-Level Fundraising, 15 Mgmt. Information Exch. J. 23 – 29 (2001).