Files
Abstract
We develop a stylized model of fuel markets in an open economy to analyze the impact
of ethanol policy on social welfare and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The policies considered
here include the $0.51 per gallon blender’s subsidy for ethanol and the import tariff of $0.54 per
gallon on sugarcane ethanol. Our analysis shows that the combined subsidy and tariff policy
decreases welfare by about $3.6 billion relative to a non intervention policy. Furthermore, there
are no GHG mitigation benefits since GHG emissions show a slight increase (0.08%) when both
policies are in place.