The American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act: The Climate Hawk's Companion

Recently, US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, after giving  seventy nine speeches on the floor, dedicated an eightieth speech to his proposed Act of Congress, the American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act.  Our panel of thoughtful Climate Hawks discusses the bill and it’s implications.

In his speech, the Senator said:
“It’s that simple.  Make the polluters pay the full costs of their products.  Level the playing field for other forms of energy like wind and solar to fairly compete.  Keep the fee mechanism simple.  Maintain a border adjustment that keeps American goods competitive.
On the flip side, the carbon fee will generate significant new federal revenue.  The technicians are still working on the official revenue estimate for the bill, but it should be at least $1.5 trillion, and perhaps more than $2 trillion, over the first decade.  Whatever the exact number is, all of it should be returned to the American people.”

(Warning! The next sentences are full of important but obscure words. Click the links to learn more about each.) Senator Whitehouse’s bill would remedy a market failure caused by negative externalities in the use of fossil fuels. It would provide this remedy by imposing a price on carbon , essentially a fee on each barrel of oil or coal. The amount of the fee will be determined by the calculation of the social cost of carbon , which estimates the cost of the damage caused by burning the fuel. The fees would be revenue neutral , generating up to two trillion dollars over the next decade, which would all be returned to each citizen.



Here are some other interesting links:

http://citizensclimatelobby.org/

http://www.remi.com/carbon-tax-study

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/opinion/columnists/iowa-view/2014/10/04/richard-doax-climate-change/16747421/

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/11/19/3594242/sheldon-whitehouse-carbon-tax/
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/11/19/3594242/sheldon-whitehouse-carbon-tax/

http://www.carbontax.org/blogarchives/2014/11/19/new-senate-bill-would-build-polluter-pays-principle-into-climate-action/
See the links at http://massclimateaction.wordpress.com/2014/11/28/the-american-opportunity-carbon-fee-act-the-climate-hawks-companion/

Check out more  links at our blog, http://massclimateaction.wordpress.com or our Facebook page facbook.com/massclimateaction.

Because we recognize the necessity of personal accountability for our actions, because we accept responsibility for building a durable future and because we believe it is our patriotic duty as citizens to speak out, we must insist that the United States put a price on carbon.

Thanks for listening.
…Ted McIntyre