Gal Hochman, PhD, Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics Rutgers University, will present the EEEP Seminar Series, “Taxes Versus Intensity Upper-bound and the Introduction of Abatement Technologies” on November 1, 2023.
Abstract:
Gal Hochman introduces a political-economic framework to compare upper bounds with taxes to control externalities. His work models policy design in democratic regimes, assuming heterogeneous firms use polluting capital-intensive technologies but can reduce pollution by adopting cleaner technologies. If policymakers realize that policies are irreversible, they may prefer intensity upper bound over taxation to regulate and mitigate pollution. However, when cleaner technologies are more efficient, the ranking preference changes over time since taxes effects are concentrated more at the intensity margins while upper-bound at the extensive margins.
Speaker Bio:
Gal Hochman is a Professor at the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics at Rutgers University. Dr. Hochman received his Ph.D. in Economics at Columbia University in 2004. While coming out of his Ph.D., he focused on international trade agreements and crony capitalism. His stay at UC Berkeley introduced him to energy and agricultural biotechnology; his current focus includes issues related to development, energy, the environment, technology, and trade. Dr. Hochman is also keen on understanding the importance of policy in facilitating the transition to sustainable and resilient supply chains and an improved understanding of aquaculture technologies and their role in future food supply chains. Dr. Hochman presented his work at numerous conferences, has 62 peer-reviewed publications, some in top journals, and has 121 publications. He is currently the Council On Agricultural Food & Resource Economics board chair.