In This Issue:
#1 Grist: You can’t talk about the future of the Democratic Party without talking about climate change, by Ben Adler
#2 The Hill: Don’t bet the planet on carbon taxes, by Peter Barnes
#3 Oregon Climate: A call to the millennials, by Savanna Jones
#4 New York Times, June 6th editorial: The case for a carbon tax
#5 Washington Post, May 15: More and more conservative thinkers want to tax carbon. Will politicians and activists follow?, by Chris Mooney
#6 The estimated economic impacts on families of a cap-and-dividend policy, by James Boyce
#7 National conference call with Peter Barnes and Camila Thorndike
#8 Statement by Ken Kimmell, President of the Union of Concerned Scientists, on the Healthy Climate and Family Security Act
#9 HR 1027 co-sponsor list keeps growing
#1 Grist: You can’t talk about the future of the Democratic Party without talking about climate change, by Ben Adler
“‘With falling oil and gas prices, it’s hard to see a strong enough ‘price signal’ dependably emerging from any carbon tax over the next few years,’ Tidwell wrote. ‘Which is why a science-based cap is really what we need to dependably reduce carbon emissions economy-wide.’ The [Van Hollen] bill is also unabashedly progressive from an economic standpoint: It would trigger a major transfer of wealth from fossil fuel corporations to citizens, which Van Hollen argues would help alleviate the ‘middle class squeeze’ and ‘boost … the purchasing power of families across the country.’”
#2 The Hill: Don’t bet the planet on carbon taxes, by Peter Barnes
“Unlike a carbon tax, a declining carbon supply limit would send two messages to the market rather than one. A carbon tax says to the market, “Fossil fuels will get more expensive.” Many polluters can live with that, knowing they can shift higher costs to consumers or use fossil fuels more efficiently. By contrast, a declining supply cap sends a price signal and a physical one: ‘In the not-too-distant future, fossil fuels won’t be available at any price.’ That makes everyone get serious about carbon reduction and substitution.”
#3 Oregon Climate: A call to the millennials, by Savanna Jones
“Upon testifying in support of the Cap and Dividend bill in the House (HB 3250) in front of the Environment and Energy Committee on April 14th, my heart was beating so fast. Here I was, beginning my piece of history, using my own voice and calling on the legislators to take action instead of sit back in their chairs and watch the clock. I urge my peers to do the same: step forward instead of watch the clock. Raise your voice for change so that our children wish they were here to see us. I urge my fellow Millennials to join the revolution and claim the future as our own.”
#4 New York Times, June 6th editorial: The case for a carbon tax
“A carbon tax would also be much easier to administer than some of the other climate change policies that many leaders, including President Obama and Gov. Jerry Brown of California, have backed. One of those policies is cap-and-trade, an approach that limits overall emissions and allows businesses to buy and sell permits that entitle them to emit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The United States used cap-and-trade successfully in the 1990s to reduce the pollution that causes acid rain. But a European Union trading system for greenhouse gas emissions has not been as effective.”
#5 Washington Post, May 15: More and more conservative thinkers want to tax carbon. Will politicians and activists follow? By Chris Mooney
“Prominent thinkers on the right are increasingly pushing — and drawing considerable attention for pushing — a climate policy idea that Republicans may have to strongly consider one day. That idea is a carbon tax, supported not only by former SC Congressman Bob Inglis but libertarian Jerry Taylor — whose recently launched Niskanen Center seeks to advance pragmatic libertarian ideas in Washington. One of the first of those ideas is not just a carbon tax, but a carbon tax in exchange for getting rid of the EPA’s Clean Power Plan regulations on greenhouse gas emissions. It’s a deal he thinks conservatives and libertarians can get behind — just as soon as they face the music and accept that some kind of climate change regulations are going to happen, somehow or other.”
#6 The estimated economic impacts on families of a cap-and-dividend policy, by James Boyce
“Below are two tables showing the estimated net impacts of a policy that caps national carbon emissions, auctions 100% of the permits and rebates all of the revenue to the public as equal per capita dividends. Table 1 shows the net impact on the median household—the household in the middle of the income distribution range in each state. Table 2 presents a more detailed picture, showing the net impact by state and by income decile—stratifying each state’s households from the poorest 10% to the richest 10% on the basis of their incomes.”
#7 National conference call with Peter Barnes and Camila Thorndike
On April 15 a national conference call was held, organized by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, which focused on the emergence of several statewide efforts to enact a legislative price on carbon, with most or all of the proceeds returned as dividends or tax cuts. Mike Tidwell gave an overview of those state efforts, and writer and entrepreneur Peter Barnes and Camila Thorndike, ED of Oregon Climate, spoke and answered questions. Below is the recording of that conference call.
#8 Statement by Ken Kimmell, President of the Union of Concerned Scientists, on the Healthy Climate and Family Security Act:
“The best available science tells us that we must significantly reduce heat-trapping emissions to limit the worst impacts of climate change. Putting a price on carbon uses market forces to find the most-cost effective ways to cut carbon emissions and reap the benefits of a transition to a clean energy economy. Congressman Van Hollen’s Healthy Climate and Family Security Act is a strong step forward in this direction.”
-Ken Kimmell, President of the Union of Concerned Scientists, former Chair of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)
#9 HR 1027 co-sponsor list keeps growing
The Healthy Climate and Family Security Act of 2015, HR 1027, currently has 25 House co-sponsors:
Rep. Donald Beyer (VA-8)
Rep. Matt Cartwright (PA-17)
Rep. Alan Lowenthal (CA-47)
Rep. Gerry Connolly (VA-11)
Rep. Earl Blumenauer, (OR-3)
Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-At Large)
Rep. Raul Grijalva (AZ-3)
Rep. Peter Welch (VT-At Large)
Rep. Charles Rangel (NY-13)
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (CA-19)
Rep. Adam Schiff (CA-28)
Rep. Grace Napolitano (CA-32)
Rep. Michael Honda (CA-17)
Rep. John Conyers (MI-13)
Rep. Barbara Lee (CA-13)
Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11)
Rep. Jerry McNerney (CA-9)
Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-33)
Rep. Janice Hahn (CA-44)
Rep. James McGovern (MA-2)
Rep. Janice Schakowsky (IL-9)
Rep. Keith Ellison (MN-5)
Rep. Alcee Hastings (FL-20)
Rep. Sam Farr (CA-20)
Rep. Steve Cohen (TN-09)
Click here to stay updated on the most current House co-sponsors
CCAN encourages readers of the Pricing Carbon, Paying Dividends Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included.
Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org.