Gas Guzzler Incentives

1. Americans are known for their long-term love affair with their cars. But as gasoline prices soar and concern about the environment mounts, the standard of living by ordinary people on a daily basis also become difficult; the need to conserve gasoline has become increasingly clear. What would it take to reduce the overall demand for gasoline in the United States most especially as we see it now?

For years environmentalists have been screaming about going green, recycling and reusing products, and so forth. So the idea of our vehicles using alternative fuel sources would be a welcomed change. With the dozen of vehicles and fuel sources being introduced, it is now a possibility to add alternative fuel vehicles to our rental car fleet. Through this presentation, gasoline and alternative fuel vehicles will be fully outlined; the history, the sources of fuel, and consumer incentives will all be explained.

The second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States is related to transportation, the burning of oil to produce energy in a combustion motor. The combustion process inside of engines is what produces the carbon matter that is emitted into the air through the exhaust system on gas-powered vehicles. Gas-powered transportation is accountable for 24 percent of the global carbon emissions; this should not come as much of a surprise given the amount of urban sprawl that is being seen in the United States and across the globe. In the past decade, the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States government, and major car manufacturers have been working in conjunction to find ways to provide a “greener” form of transportation (EPA, 2011). This has included testing the use of hydropower, ethanol, natural gas, biodiesel, and electricity as a means of powering vehicles, which has led to the introduction of hybrid vehicles. Hybrid vehicles run on electricity and gasoline, the byproduct of oil that is generally used in the engine combustion process of vehicles (U.S. Department of

Increasing the United States federal gasoline tax is currently a debated issue as a means of curtailing dependency on foreign oil and improving the country’s environment. An increases, however, would be regressive and would place another hardship on citizens who already feel as if taxes are too high. Because of the unpopularity of such a tax, nationally elected officials have not seriously floated the plan as means of raising revenue, but it could be used as a means to progressively cut income taxes.

Every day, millions of Americans turn on the engines of their cars and drive to school or work. What these people do not realize is that the vehicles they operate greatly pollute the planet. According to the Environmental Protection Agency’s recent website post, “Environmental Impacts from Automobiles”,

As western society has been aggressively expanding, the consumption of materials has followed suit. This leads to a negative effect on the environment. To curb the decay of the planet, it is important for humans to have a handle on how much we consume. One consequence of consumption is the emissions produced by our vehicles. It is crucial to develop a government policy that most effectively controls and reduces the amount of these emissions we give off. While the government has introduced many subsidization policies, the most efficient policy the government could enact is to raise the taxes on gas.

Pursuant to energy efficiency policies, controversy swirls as climate changes are experienced in the U.S. and around the globe. When energy efficiency steps are put into place, economic outlooks turn positive. Obama’s policymaking in this arena makes “critical investments in advanced vehicle and fuel technologies, public transit, and high speed rail” (United Press International). With new fuel efficiency standards that will improve fuel economy by 2025, and other initiatives that he enacted, “12 billion barrels of oil will be saved and American consumers will save $1.7 trillion at the pump, and greenhouse gas emission standards for commercial trucks, vans, and buses for are projected to save over 500 million barrels of oil and save vehicle owners and operators an estimated $50 billion in fuel costs” (United Press

In conversations globally the environment is a hot topic. Issues with the ozone layer, depleting natural resources, and health risks associated with emissions and changes in climate coupled with its resulting natural disasters; have pushed conservation issues into the spotlight. The environmental issues presented today are not the result of one country, one type, or one-industry actions but a communal failure of a mixture of several. With that said many countries and industries are going through policy changes to combat environmental issues that will hopefully benefit the environment, the consumer, and industries.

Basically the total tax has a key point in the reason of the value. 12% of that overall price of gas includes both federal and state taxes and how much each figures into the total price. Each state has a different tax rate per gallon of gas, so where you live is the most important facot in choosing the overall price of filling up your tank. States like California and New York usually have higher taxes therefore making it more expensive and also going into economic factors of the state. How is gasoline made you wonder, gas is made from crude oil, which has formed from the remains of fossils of aquatic plants and animals that lived hundreds of millions of years ago. These remains were covered with layers of sediment which in millions of years of extreme pressure and high temperature became the mix of liquid hydrocarbons. The raw form of gasoline which is crude

Though most consumers may not realize it, the price of oil is not the primary determination for gasoline prices. It is more complicated that what most consumer may realize. The price of gasoline is determined by a number of variables. Things such as the supply, demand, inflation and taxes. Thought most consumer think that demand is the main reason for the increase of gas price they would be mistake. It does play a part, but there are larger variables that have a greater hand in the increase of prices. Taxation and inflation can make more significant increase than the demand of gas. This became for evident doing the US recent recession when gas prices skyrocketed due to oil demand and supply. Most states gave consumer a large relief by waving gas tax for

Environmental concerns have been raised from time to time because of the dependency on the gasoline-fueled engine as the chief auto powertrain technology. This has resulted in exposing many automobile users to unpredictable prices of fuel. These issues were, however, the reason for

In managing the emissions of GHGs(Green House Gases), carbon taxes will be imposed mid 2012. "Economic theory anticipates that with the increased costs of emitting GHGs, drives emitters to downsize their activities." Salem Press (2009)

Another crisis is the price of gasoline. It is a major interest to almost everyone in the country and almost everywhere in the world. It seems that every month and sometimes every day, gas prices are either spiking or dropping, but never stable. Gas price nowadays is the highest gas price increase since 1990. As consumers across the country drive up to gasoline pumps to fill their tanks, they are all asking the same questions- why are prices rising so quickly to such high levels? People spend more on gasoline and have less money to spend on other purchases these days. According to Statistics Canada, Canadians drive more than 4.2 trillion kilometers per year, burning up 1 liters of gasoline. Scientists announced that fossil fuel will be depleted within 50 years and it is natural that the gas price will go up. Most products require burning up of gasoline in order to be produced, and we will need sufficient amount for economic growth. People who are concerned about the environment and the gas price have already begun to recognize the potential of hybrid and electric cars. By driving in electric or hybrid vehicles, we can contribute to making our environment greener, reduce carbon dioxide emissions and gasoline usage.

Environmental tax credits offered by various levels of government are extremely popular with both the governing bodies and those who benefit from the credits. Government is seen as taking a positive step not only towards improving the environment, but reducing the United States’ dependency on fuel from other countries which in turn allows for greater security. Tax credits allow the individual or business to decide how to spend their money and the financial benefit of a particular behavior. The financial benefit may be in the form of reduced operating costs or taxes.

The US consumed 142 billion gallons of gasoline in 2007 and the tax applied on it is 18. 4 cents on one gallon. All around the US, there are around 162,000 retail gasoline outlets. With the price of crude oil hovering around $100 a barrel, it is no wonder that concern is growing about the gas prices being so high. After all, modern economies are kept moving by this lifeblood. For instance, in the United States alone personal vehicles consume more than 140 billion gallons of diesel fuel and gasoline per year.However, there are several factors that contribute to the gas prices being so high. Given below are a few of them. Increasing Demand for Oil One of the main catalysts for the incessant rise in gas prices has been one of the most