To achieve deep cuts in us emissions, state-driven policy is only slightly more expensive than nationally uniform policy

Using a multi-sector model of human and natural systems, we find that the nationwide cost from state-varying climate policy in the United States is only one-tenth higher than that of

nationally uniform policy. The benefits of state-led action — leadership, experimentation and the practical reality that states implement policy more reliably than the federal government —

do not necessarily come with a high economic cost. MESSAGES FOR POLICY * Heterogeneous federal approaches to tackle climate change may be more sustainable politically; the extra cost, as

compared with idealized uniform policy, may be low. * Wealth, economic structure and carbon intensity vary by state; state-led policies can embrace regional differences in interests and

capabilities, bringing large political benefits with small extra cost. * Efforts to remove barriers for inter-state trade of energy products — electricity and liquid fuels, especially —

could help to lower mitigation costs not only for the leading states but also nationally. * Investing in critical technologies in harder-to-abate sectors could make it easier for

jurisdictions that are lagging behind the leaders to adopt new technologies and policies. * Deep emissions cuts hinge on nearly every state making some effort; strategies that elicit at

least minimal effort from all while encouraging increased ambition and faster action from leading jurisdictions may be most effective. Access through your institution Buy or subscribe This

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ACCESS OPTIONS: * Log in * Learn about institutional subscriptions * Read our FAQs * Contact customer support REFERENCES FURTHER READING * Iyer, G. et al. Measuring progress from nationally

determined contributions to mid-century strategies. _Nat. Clim. Change_ 7, 871–874 (2017). THIS STUDY UTILIZED THE SAME MODEL (GCAM-USA) TO EXAMINE THE REQUIRED TRANSITION IN THE ENERGY

SYSTEM FOR THE UNITED STATES TO ACHIEVE DEEP DECARBONIZATION BY THE MIDDLE OF THE CENTURY. Article  Google Scholar  * Peng, W. et al. Climate policy models need to get real about people —

here’s how. _Nature_ 594, 174–176 (2021). THIS COMMENTARY PROVIDES THE BROADER CONTEXT OF THE RESEARCH AGENDA FOR BRINGING POLITICS INTO INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT MODELS. Article  CAS  Google

Scholar  * Keohane, R. O. & Victor, D. G. Cooperation and discord in global climate policy. _Nat. Clim. Change_ 6, 570–575 (2016). THIS PAPER DISCUSSED DECENTRALIZED POLICY STRATEGY TO

TACKLE CLIMATE CHANGE, WHICH COULD LEAD, INCREMENTALLY, TO DEEPER COOPERATION. Article  Google Scholar  * Sabel, C. F. & Victor, D. G. Governing global problems under uncertainty: making

bottom-up climate policy work. _Clim. Change_ 144, 15–27 (2017). THIS PAPER HIGHLIGHTS THE IMPORTANCE OF INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT FOR THE SUCCESS OF BOTTOM-UP CLIMATE ACTION. Article  Google

Scholar  * Bauer, N. et al. Quantification of an efficiency–sovereignty trade-off in climate policy. _Nature_ 588, 261–266 (2020). WHILE WE STUDIED NON-UNIFORM POLICY EFFORTS ACROSS THE US

STATES, THIS STUDY EXAMINED NON-UNIFORM EFFORTS ACROSS COUNTRIES USING A GLOBAL-SCALE INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT MODEL (REMIND–MAGPIE). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  Download references

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS W.P. received a summer research stipend from the Penn State School of International Affairs. G.I., M.B. and J.A.E. received support from the Global Technology Strategy

Program. D.G.V. draws funding, in part, from the Electric Power Research Institute, a non-profit R&D organisation focused on the electric power sector. D.G.V. is also supported partly by

donations to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography for research on emergency responses to climate change. AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * School of International Affairs and

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA Wei Peng * Joint Global Change Research Institute, Pacific Northwest National

Laboratory, College Park, MD, USA Gokul Iyer, Matthew Binsted & James A. Edmonds * School of the Environment, Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, Yale University, New Haven,

CT, USA Jennifer Marlon * Center for Global Sustainability, School of Public Policy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA Leon Clarke * School of Global Policy and Strategy,

University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA David G. Victor * Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA David G. Victor *

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Jacobs School of Engineering, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA David G. Victor * The Brookings Institution, Washington, DC, USA

David G. Victor Authors * Wei Peng View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Gokul Iyer View author publications You can also search for this

author inPubMed Google Scholar * Matthew Binsted View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Jennifer Marlon View author publications You can also

search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Leon Clarke View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * James A. Edmonds View author publications

You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * David G. Victor View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar CORRESPONDING AUTHOR

Correspondence to Wei Peng. ETHICS DECLARATIONS COMPETING INTERESTS D.G.V. is a consultant to the shareholder group Engine No. 1. The other authors declare no competing interests. RIGHTS AND

PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Peng, W., Iyer, G., Binsted, M. _et al._ To achieve deep cuts in US emissions, state-driven policy is only slightly

more expensive than nationally uniform policy. _Nat. Clim. Chang._ 11, 911–912 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-021-01193-5 Download citation * Published: 28 October 2021 * Issue

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