Karen Palmer
Senior Fellow; Director, Electric Power Program
Karen Palmer is a senior fellow at RFF and an expert on the economics of environmental, climate and public utility regulation of the electric power sector. Her work seeks to improve the design of environmental and technology regulations in the sector and the development of new institutions to help guide the ongoing transition of the electricity sector. To these ends, she explores climate policy design, analyzes efficient ways to promote use of renewable and other clean sources of electricity, and investigates new market designs, new approaches to electricity pricing and regulatory reforms to pave the way for long-term decarbonization of electricity supply and electrification of the energy economy.
In the 1990s, Palmer spent six months as a visiting economist in the Office of Economic Policy at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission where she worked on wholesale market design in the nascent ISO markets. She has served on three National Academies study panels, including one on the future of electricity from renewables and one on the future of electric power in the US. She is immediate past President of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (AERE) and serves on the Environmental Advisory Council to the New York ISO and on the Future Power Market Forum Advisory Group. She is the recipient of the Public Utility Research Center’s 2015 Distinguished Service Award and was elected as an AERE Fellow in 2018. Her published papers have appeared in many academic journals including the American Economic Review, the RAND Journal of Economics, The Journal of Political Economy and The Journal of Environmental Economics and Management.
Education
- PhD in economics, Boston College, 1990
- BA in economics, Brandeis University, 1981
Featured Content
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Media Highlight — Nov 8, 2024
Marketplace: “Smart Thermostats and Virtual Power Plants Make the Most of Excess Energy”
Senior Fellow Karen Palmer speaks to incentives for virtual power plants in this radio story.
Webinar — Nov 13, 2024
Offshore Wind Power Examined
A webinar detailing the findings of the working paper “Offshore Wind Power Examined: Effects, Benefits, and Costs of Offshore Wind Farms Along the US Atlantic and Gulf Coasts”
Resources Magazine — Oct 7, 2024
From 1959 Through Today: 65 Years of Resources Magazine
The past 65 years of Resources—the full archive of articles dating back to the start of the magazine in 1959—are now freely available online to anyone who’s looking for accurate, trustworthy information about environmental economics.
Resources Magazine — Oct 7, 2024
Putting Resources for the Future on the Map
The “souvenirs” that RFF researchers bring back from their global travels—new perspectives, knowledge, stories, and photos—show a world of Resources that are out there and worth sharing.
Report — Sep 5, 2024
Modeling Obstacles to Energy Infrastructure for Improved Policy Analysis
This report summarizes key takeaways from a series of workshops convened to identify and find solutions to energy infrastructure deployment challenges.
Journal Article — Aug 27, 2024
Leveraging the Inflation Reduction Act to Achieve 80x30 in the US Electricity Sector
This paper examines the consequences of the Inflation Reduction Act and of policies designed to hit the Paris target for generation mix, consumer costs of electricity, the federal budget, air quality, and human health.
Report — Jun 25, 2024
Time for a Market Upgrade? A Review of Wholesale Electricity Market Designs for the Future
This report evaluates and compares electricity market designs for the clean energy transition.
Carbon Score — Jun 7, 2024
Carbon Scoring: An Initial Baseline
This analysis establishes an initial baseline for RFF’s carbon scoring work, comparing our current central projection, including the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and more recent policy developments, against a baseline scenario from 2022.
Webinar — Nov 13, 2024
Offshore Wind Power Examined
A webinar detailing the findings of the working paper “Offshore Wind Power Examined: Effects, Benefits, and Costs of Offshore Wind Farms Along the US Atlantic and Gulf Coasts”
RFF Live — May 23, 2024
Transforming Transmission: Unpacking Order 1920, FERC’s New Regional Transmission Planning Rule
A webinar featuring a panel of experts examining the Federal Energy Regulation Commission's May 13 Grid Expansion Rule.
Workshop — Jun 12, 2023
Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) Mandates Workshop: Research for Effective, Efficient, and Equitable Policy Implementation
An RFF workshop exploring zero-mission vehicle (ZEV) mandates and how they will change the transportation landscape in the United States.
RFF Live — May 19, 2023
Unplugging Emissions: Exploring New EPA Rules on Climate and Health
An RFF Live event examining three recent proposed and final rules on power-sector emissions from the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Resources Magazine — Oct 7, 2024
From 1959 Through Today: 65 Years of Resources Magazine
The past 65 years of Resources—the full archive of articles dating back to the start of the magazine in 1959—are now freely available online to anyone who’s looking for accurate, trustworthy information about environmental economics.
Resources Magazine — Oct 7, 2024
Putting Resources for the Future on the Map
The “souvenirs” that RFF researchers bring back from their global travels—new perspectives, knowledge, stories, and photos—show a world of Resources that are out there and worth sharing.
Resources Magazine — May 16, 2024
Evolving Electricity Markets
Experts answer: What will US electricity markets look like in an emissions-free world?
In Focus — Apr 22, 2024
In Focus: Regulating Emissions from US Power Plants
This video shares insights about a forthcoming rule from the US Environmental Protection Agency that is expected to limit emissions from the power sector, with RFF Senior Fellow Karen Palmer.
Media Highlight — Nov 8, 2024
Marketplace: “Smart Thermostats and Virtual Power Plants Make the Most of Excess Energy”
Senior Fellow Karen Palmer speaks to incentives for virtual power plants in this radio story.
Media Highlight — Aug 7, 2024
Washington Post: “Americans Tapped $8 Billion in Tax Credits on Home Energy Upgrades”
RFF Senior Fellow Karen Palmer is quoted in this article about how Americans used tax credits made available under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Press Release — Nov 9, 2023
Adding an Emissions Cap to the Inflation Reduction Act Could Create More Cost-Effective, Certain Emissions Reductions
New RFF modeling shows that a federal cap on power-sector emissions could carry the United States to its power-sector emissions goal, and that such a cap would be less expensive for emitters and households than it would have been otherwise.
Media Highlight — Aug 8, 2023
Harvard Environmental Insights Podcast: "The Electricity Sector and Climate Policy: A Discussion with Karen Palmer"
Senior Fellow Karen Palmer, who leads RFF's Electric Power Program, shares her thoughts on electricity regulation, climate policy, and more in this podcast episode.