California Energy Efficiency: Lessons for the Rest of the World, or Not?
39 Pages Posted: 18 Jun 2013 Last revised: 3 Apr 2022
Date Written: June 2013
Abstract
Starting in the 1970s California's residential electricity consumption per capita stopped increasing, while other states' electricity use continued to grow steadily. Similar patterns can be seen in non-electric energy, industry, and transportation. What accounts for California's apparent energy savings? Some credit the strict energy efficiency standards for buildings and appliances enacted by California in the mid-1970s. They argue that other states and countries could replicate California's gains, and that California should build on its own success by tightening those standards further. Skeptics might point to three long-run trends that differentiate California's electricity demand from other states: (1) shifting of the U.S. population towards warmer climates of the South and West; (2) relatively small income elasticity of energy demand in California's temperate climate; and (3) evolving differences between the demographics of households in California and other states. Together, these trends account for around 90 percent of California's apparent residential electricity savings, thus providing no lessons for other states or countries considering adopting or tightening their energy efficiency standards.
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?
Recommended Papers
-
Energy Efficiency Economics and Policy
By Kenneth Gillingham, Richard G. Newell, ...
-
Energy Efficiency Economics and Policy
By Kenneth Gillingham, Richard G. Newell, ...
-
The Rebound Effect and Energy Efficiency Policy
By Kenneth Gillingham, David Rapson, ...
-
Are Building Codes Effective at Saving Energy? Evidence from Residential Billing Data in Florida
By Grant Jacobsen and Matthew J. Kotchen
-
Is There an Energy Efficiency Gap?
By Hunt Allcott and Michael Greenstone
-
Is There an Energy Efficiency Gap?
By Hunt Allcott, Hunt Allcott, ...
-
Cost-Effectiveness of Electricity Energy Efficiency Programs
By Toshi H. Arimura, Shanjun Li, ...
-
Cost-Effectiveness of Electricity Energy Efficiency Programs
By Toshi H. Arimura, Shanjun Li, ...
-
By Dora L. Costa and Matthew E. Kahn