National Bureau of Economic Research

Electric vehicle (EV) sales have been rising as a share of new car purchases, and they are expected to continue to do so because a range of public policies support the decarbonization of the transportation sector. The electricity used to charge an EV can be substantial. An average household consumes approximately 1 kilowatt-hours of electricity per hour. An EV charging on a common (level 2) fast charger typically uses 7 to 8 kWh per hour. The impact of greater EV penetration on the cost of electricity and reliability of electricity distribution systems will depend critically on when EVs are charged, as charging during high-demand times could strain the system and necessitate substantial investments in grid infrastructure. Encouraging EV drivers who might charge at high-demand times to shift to other times when there is…

Sustainable investing has been growing very rapidly, as investors increasingly express concerns about climate change, biodiversity loss, social inequality, and other societal issues. According to Bloomberg, sustainable investing will reach about $50 trillion in assets under management (AUM) in 2025, accounting for about one-third of global AUM.

While the growth of this market is nothing short of breathtaking, there are concerns and challenges. Indeed, concerns have been raised that such investments and companies’ environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices may not have any real impact; rather, they might be a form of “greenwashing” — with businesses portraying themselves as environmentally conscious without any intent to deliver — or “window dressing…

In the aftermath of a heart attack, Black patients are less likely than White patients to receive percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), a procedure that improves blood flow in the heart. They also have higher one-year mortality rates following heart attacks. In Do PCI Facility Openings Differentially Affect AMI Patients by Individual Race and Community Segregation? (NBER Working Paper 31626), Renee Y. Hsia and Yu-Chu Shen demonstrate that the opening of a new PCI-capable facility in a community reduces racial disparities in both PCI treatment...

The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated health and economic burdens have unfolded quite differently across states in the US. These differences are due to a variety of factors, including population density, socioeconomic status, health, and state policies. Variation across states in the timing and magnitude of the pandemic as well as in state characteristics and policies may have affected the dynamics of federal disability applications during this period.

In Inter-State Variation in Disability Applications During the COVID-19 Pandemic (NBER RDRC Working Paper 22-02), researchers Pinka Chatterji, Yiran Han, Kajal Lahiri, Jinman Pang, and Yimeng Yin examine inter-state differences in the monthly dynamics of disability applications after the onset...

In Do Entrepreneurs Want Control? And Should They Get What They Want? A Historical and Theoretical Exploration (NBER Working Paper 31106), Naomi R. Lamoreaux and Jean-Laurent Rosenthal develop a model of startup financing in which founders and outside investors compete for control of the firm. They apply their framework to study how companies’ outcomes, in particular subsequent innovations, are influenced by which group has the upper hand.

The researchers find that no simple corporate governance rule fits all circumstances. Entrepreneurs want a company to fund their vision of continued technological development. Investors want to earn favorable returns on the funds they invest in an entrepreneur’s project. Because entrepreneurs can personally gain...