| This thesis explores renewable energy policies in the United States and Germany with a particular focus on Germany's Feed-in Tariff, a government statute that contractually obligates utilities to buy renewable energy from producers through long-term, fixed-price contracts. Through analysis of the existing literature and media reports, the paper compares Germany's Feed-in Tariff with the mix of renewable energy policies used in the US and concludes that a Feed-In Tariff is a more effective tool to encourage rapid renewable energy development. The final chapter of the paper compares Germany's Feed-in Tariff with a proposed Federal US Feed-in Tariff, H.R. 6401, the Renewable Energy Jobs and Security Act, and determines that the US is not ready for a federal implementation of this type of policy, arguing instead that municipal and state versions of the policy will be the best way to introduce it to the US and help it gain a foothold. |
