Trying to entice businesses is expensive and ineffective

The post New York Child Care Subsidy Staff Describe How Policy Implementation Influences Latino Families’ Receipt of Subsidies was curated by information for practice.

Companies such as Meta have said such a move would not solve the telcos' financial problems and ignores hefty investments by tech companies.

For some context, these subsidies did come to an end in May but were reinstated in August through to October to cope with the warmer weather. Subsequently, they were continued until this year-end but the funds had to be drawn from reserves in the budget for the fiscal year that started in April.

NHK is now reporting that the government is considering keeping these subsidies from January through to March next year. Amid a higher cost of living in key populated areas such as Tokyo, the measure above is mainly to try and combat rising consumer prices.

Biden’s Green Energy Subsidies Are Making China Great Again The left-wing site Politico was surprisingly honest with this headline: Biden is desperately trying to lure solar panel production from China to the United States with lavish subsidies. But the companies that are taking the cash and hanging a shingle are… Chinese: When Biden and congressional Democrats passed the […]

Subsidies and Sustainable Agriculture: Mapping the Policy Landscape Research paper sysadmin 10 December 2019

Agricultural subsidies shape production and consumption patterns, with potentially significant effects on poverty, nutrition and other sustainability concerns. This paper maps the different types of support provided by governments to the agricultural sector, and highlights some of the complex political economy dynamics that underpin the relevant policies.

Summary

• Agricultural subsidies, a mainstay of government policy, have a large part in shaping production and consumption patterns, with potentially significant effects as regards poverty, food security, nutrition, and other sustainability concerns such as climate change, land use practices and biodiversity.
• There are multiple types of direct and indirect support provided by governments to various actors in the agricultural sector; and in terms of political economy, there are complex dynamics underpinning the policies that sustain these subsidies.
• Overall, subsidies targeting producers have the most significant effect on production, and the greater trade-distorting effect. These subsidies promote domestic production and discourage imports, leading to overproduction that is largely disposed of on the international market, with the help of export subsidies. This can tend to intensify negative environmental agricultural practices, such as cultivating marginal land, unsustainable types of intensification, or incentivizing excessive pesticide and fertilizer use.
• On the other hand, producer subsidies that are not tied to output of a specific commodity (i.e. delinked) have far fewer distorting impacts and could help to deliver sustainable outcomes. For example, this type of subsidies can require crop diversification or be linked to conservation of permanent grassland.
• Subsidies that enable transfers to consumers, for example through food stamp programmes, also serve to delink production from consumption, can foster healthier diets, can play an important role in delivering food accessibility and security among low-income groups, and can represent one of the less trade-distorting subsidies.
• If subsidies are to be reformed to help promote healthier diets and encourage more sustainable production, it is essential to understand not only the type and amount of support that key countries provide, but also the domestic dynamics that can shape such policies.
• While price support, input subsidies or investment aids remain the central pillars of programmes in large developing countries such as Brazil, China or India, other economies – notably including the EU and Japan – focus on direct payments, support for general services and set-aside schemes, as well as significant border protection. The US, for its part, has tended to focus on subsidized insurance schemes and food programmes for poorer consumers.
• If subsidies are to deliver policy objectives, their design and implementation should delink production from consumption. For example, consumer subsidies designed to deliver nutrition and food security, or payments for environmental services to enable more environmentally friendly production systems, could prove to be the most effective, least trade-distorting means of achieving more sustainable and equitable agricultural production.
• The political economy of food means that the removal of subsidies is often highly sensitive, and tends to be met with significant resistance. However, reform that delinks support from production through a gradual transition process could ultimately prove successful in delivering effective subsidy schemes.
• Effective subsidy schemes must by design be truly result- and performance-based, supported by robust and objective indicators. At the same time, engaging multiple actors along key commodity value chains – including leading importing and exporting countries, traders and transporters – could lead to the development of international, commodity-specific arrangements that are able to deliver effective nutrition and sustainability goals.

Apr 8, 2024

Behavioral economist Hunt Allcott, Professor of Global Environmental Policy at the Doerr School of Sustainability at Stanford University, questioned the impact of new and used electric vehicle (EV) subsidies in the latest episode of “Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program.”

Food and fertiliser subsidies are expected to be increased in the Union Budget 2024, sources say

National Bureau of Economic Research

The Minister said the Centre increased subsidy to protect farmers interest, and added that it is likely to come down

Fossil fuels are reaping $550 billion a year in subsidies and holding back investment in cleaner forms of energy, the International Energy Agency said.

Fossil fuels are reaping $550 billion a year in subsidies and holding back investment in cleaner forms of energy, the International Energy Agency said.

Colombia has made progress towards eliminating fuel and diesel subsidies and reducing discretionary spaces allowing for artificially low fuel prices, but challenges remain. This paper discusses the political economy of fuel subsidies in the country to understand why reform has been so slow.

Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD congratulated the newly elected President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, for taking a bold first step in his economic reform agenda by substantially cutting fuel subsidies.

The OECD has welcomed the release by China and the US of peer reviews of their fossil fuel subsidies.

The OECD welcomes the release of voluntary G20 peer reviews of Indonesia and Italy’s efforts to phase out and rationalise their inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies at the 2nd meeting of G20 Energy Transitions Working Group under the Japanese Presidency in Toyama, Japan.

This report investigates in what ways Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) could incorporate environmental objectives in chapters and articles related to subsidies for energy and environmental goods. It highlights the current state of play in incorporating provisions related to environmentally related subsidies in RTAs.

A new OECD report presents around 550 measures that support fossil-fuel production or use in the OECD’s 34 member countries and also highlights the successes and challenges in bringing about reform, says this OECD Insights blog post.

A new OECD publication highlights notable economic and environmental benefits of phasing out fossil-fuel subsidies in Indonesia. Interestingly, the study is based on the context that pertained until mid-2014, when international oil prices where high and before the recent phase-out of subsidies by the government.

The OECD has welcomed the release by China and the US of peer reviews of their fossil fuel subsidies.

Developing countries must take a collective stand on 'Zero-Tolerance to Subsidies' to protect their agriculture, says Devinder Sharma.

According to the European Union's plans for agricultural reforms, subsidies received by farmers will now become their entitlement until 2013. The big businesses that get most of these subsidies are quite happy; meanwhile the subsidies continue to create starvation and death in the developing world, notes Devinder Sharma.

Public subsidies are important in encouraging organisations to trial and expand electric vehicle fleets, according to new research. The study, based on interviews and reports from 17 organisations, found that the opportunity to test new technology was the most important factor in deciding to trial electric vehicles. However, some smaller independent companies chose not to expand their fleet because of the expense.

Subsidies support economic sectors and grant advantages to consumers, but can harm the environment. A new study has tested a number of existing tools for assessing environmentally harmful subsidies (EHS), developed a comprehensive methodology for identifying and analysing EHS and highlighted opportunities for reforming them.

President Obama calls on Congress to end the oil industry subsidies.

The latest assault on ethanol subsidies comes from one of the nation's leading newspapers.

If the USDA says that vegetables and fruits should make up half of our diets, why does less than 1 percent of its food subsidies go to farmers who grow produce?

It's political. The mantra is that electric cars shouldn't be government-subsidized, but some of the same critics of these programs have no problem with billion

Buying water entitlement from irrigators, installing cameras on the river, and a subsidy to install water meters are at the centre of a $70 million Government spend to prevent fish kills.

The Northern Territory cattle industry calls for freight subsidies as "emergency" destocking continues across the drought-stricken Barkly region.

11 December 2019

Agricultural subsidies shape production and consumption patterns, with potentially significant effects on poverty, nutrition and other sustainability concerns. This paper maps the different types of support provided by governments to the agricultural sector, and highlights some of the complex political economy dynamics that underpin the relevant policies. 

Applications for the $1.3 billion in subsidies earmarked for registered owners of goods vehicles and green minibus operators under the Anti-epidemic Fund opened today, the Transport Department announced.

A one-off non-accountable subsidy of $10,000 will be provided to each registered goods vehicle owner for each goods vehicle.

From today until September 30, registered owners of goods vehicles who have received the department's letters must use the registration PIN provided in the letters for submission of registrations through GovHK.

After successful completion of registration, the subsidy will be disbursed to the designated local bank account provided in the registration through autopay in about two to three weeks.

Cross-boundary goods vehicle drivers who conduct nucleic acid tests in Hong Kong can apply for the subsidy on an accountable basis, with the maximum amount being $350 per test.

A one-off non-accountable subsidy of $30,000 per green minibus will be provided to each holder of a Passenger Service Licence-Public Light Bus (Scheduled) Service who has been approved to operate a relevant green minibus route package.

The department briefed the green minibus trade today on the subsidy arrangement and application details with the distribution of the application forms.

Green minibus operators are required to send the completed application forms to the department by post on or before September 30.

After the department has verified their submissions, the subsidy will be disbursed through autopay in about one month.

To assist the transport trades to cope with operational demands in the prevailing economic environment, the Government has rolled out the fuel subsidy and one-off subsidy measures under the first round of the Anti-epidemic Fund progressively.

As of mid-April, the department has received applications for subsidies from three franchised bus companies, 10 franchised and licensed ferry operators, Hong Kong Tramways Limited, registrations from 1,700 registered owners of non-franchised public buses, school private light buses and hire cars. Over $100 million of the subsidies have been disbursed.

Click here for details.

The Commerce & Economic Development Bureau today announced that the subsidy quota for three mask production lines have been reassigned.

Three production lines, previously approved under the Local Mask Production Subsidy Scheme, have withdrawn from the scheme, the Government said.

The subsidy quota concerned has been allocated to SDL Skin (Asia), Safeguard HK and SwissTech.

SDL Skin (Asia) has been approved for obtaining a subsidy for a second production line and is expected to supply an average of 1.6 million masks every month to the Government. The production line may receive a subsidy of up to $1 million.

Safeguard HK has been approved for obtaining a subsidy for one production line and is expected to supply an average of 500,000 masks to the Government every month. The production line may receive up to $2 million.

SwissTech has been approved for obtaining a subsidy for one production line and is expected to supply an average of 2 million masks every month to the Government and produce a further 1 million masks on average monthly for the local market.

The production line may receive up to $3 million.

It is estimated that when all 20 subsidised lines under the scheme are in full production, they will collectively supply 33.85 million masks to the Government and a further 7.15 million to the local market monthly.

The companies which withdrew from the scheme were CareHK and Shang Manufactory.

The Government did not sign agreements with or make disbursements to these firms.

The Government today said the first batch of subsidies amounting to $5.6 million under two relief measures for recyclers has been disbursed, while $5.6 million in subsidies had been approved under a management sector support scheme.

The two Recycling Fund measures aim to help the recycling industry cope with the current economic situation and recent operational difficulties arising from the COVID-19 epidemic.

The Advisory Committee on Recycling Fund announced in mid-March to reserve $100 million to launch the One-off Recycling Industry Anti-epidemic Scheme.

The scheme provides timely financial support to help with recyclers’ operational costs for six months. The funding limit for each recycler is $20,000 per month from January 1 to June 30, or $120,000 in total maximum subsidy.

The committee has also allocated additional funds to extend the earlier-launched One-off Rental Support Scheme for another six months, providing a total funding of $200 million to fight the virus and help the recycling industry ride out the difficult times.

The rental support scheme, which benefits street-corner recycling shops and recycling sites, originally ran from October to March. It has been extended for six months until September this year, totalling 12 months.

The monthly rental subsidy for each recycler is capped at $25,000, setting the maximum total rental subsidy at $300,000.

Separately, the Anti-epidemic Support Scheme for Property Management Sector has approved 205 applications involving around $5.6 million in subsidies to benefit more than 1,500 building blocks.

The relevant property management companies and owners’ organisations will receive notifications for subsidy disbursement shortly.

The list of properties for which applications have been approved is available online.

Briefing sessions were held earlier to introduce the scheme to the property management sector and owners’ organisations.

Fishery management -- United States -- History -- 20th century.

Delaware’s Public Advocate today issued a letter to the White House asking the Trump administration to deny a request for emergency bailouts for aging coal and nuclear power plants owned by a large regional energy supplier.

The Trump administration responded with a plan to authorise as much as $12 billion in aid

Fossil fuels are reaping $550 billion a year in subsidies and holding back investment in cleaner forms of energy, the International Energy Agency said.

Syria's oil and mineral resources ministry announced Saturday a reduction in automobile fuel subsidies, the latest government measure to tackle a deepening economic crisis.

SunRice says it will guarantee Australian-grown rice returns to supermarkets in April if the Murray-Darling Basin Plan is changed so environmental water can be used to grow rice.

Postmedia Network Canada Corp. expects to qualify for at least $20.3 million in COVID-related emergency wage subsidies from the federal government, the owner of Canada's largest newspaper chain said Friday.

Health news and commentary from around the Web gathered by the ALLMedPage Today staff

Bill Melot, a resident of Hobbs, N.M., appeared in federal court today before Magistrate Karen B. Molzen in Las Cruces, N.M., on tax and false statement charges. Melot, a farmer who owns approximately 250 acres in Lea County, N.M., was charged with tax evasion, failing to file tax returns, corruptly impeding the IRS, and making false statements to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Bill Melot, a resident of Hobbs, N.M., was convicted today of tax evasion, failure to file tax returns, making false statements to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and impeding the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) following a four day jury trial before Judge M. Christina Armijo in Albuquerque, N.M.