A report by the Climate Leadership Council written by our EcoRight friends Greg Bertelsen and Catrina Rorke finds that “a rising carbon fee and border carbon adjustment as a central piece of U.S. climate policy will: cut carbon emissions reductions further and faster than other measures; reduce emissions of other air pollutants that are impacting local communities; introduce powerful global incentives for other countries to rapidly reduce their emissions; and create a force multiplier that makes every policy intervention and private investment toward decarbonization more effective and easier to implement.”
In a forward, former New Jersey Governor and EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman writes:
As good as it is at cutting domestic emissions, a carbon fee doesn’t just work at home. Coupled with a system of border carbon adjustments, it is the only climate tool that increases U.S. ambition while reaching beyond our borders to price the emissions of imported goods. Overseas manufacturers will face a choice: lower their emissions or lose a piece of the world’s largest market. By leveraging the power of the U.S. consumer, America can give a muchneeded jolt to global climate efforts, encouraging other countries to switch to clean energy.
The Climate Leadership Council is an international research and advocacy organization founded in collaboration with a who’s who of business, opinion and environmental leaders to promote a carbon dividends framework as the most cost-effective, equitable and politically-viable climate solution.