Implementation of the Clean Power Plan, carbon emission standards for existing coal-fired power plants, will make energy less affordable, further burdening the poorest Americans for whom energy prices have become unbearable, according to a report out Tuesday by the Pacific Research Institute. “By forcibly revising the current energy infrastructure, the CPP will raise the costs of electricity and impose large costs on the economy. But, these costs will not be borne equally,” the report says.
According to the report, the burden of increased energy costs resulting from the implementation of the CPP will fall disproportionally on the communities least able to deal with the burden. “The CPP induced cost increases relative to household income is much higher for households in lower-income areas compared to households in wealthier areas. All necessities, including energy, are a much smaller share of the budget for wealthier households, and a much larger share of the budget for lower-income households,” the report says.