2023/08/29 by Aaron Deslatte, Michael D. Siciliano, Rachel M. Krause · 4 citations
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Environmental Science · Social Sciences · #Climate Change Policy and Economics #Sustainability and Climate Change Governance #Public Policy and Administration Research
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/puar.13726
Abstract State and local governments in the United States are the implementation agents for a vast swath of federal policies. As the country embarks on an unprecedented foray into fiscal federalism to combat climate change, we face a stark reality: many local governments are not ready. Drawing from recent data and evidence on local sustainability activities, we argue policy makers and managers at all levels of governance need to apply the lessons learned over the last two decades of subnational climate efforts. For local government managers working in the 21st century, climate change will likely be a defining social dilemma of their lifetimes. After years of inaction, the United States has taken a major step in trying to meet its greenhouse‐gas mitigation pledges. But implementation requires understanding both the opportunities and opportunity costs posed by such generational investments.