Carbon Fee and Dividend may be just what we need to fight climate change

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Carbon Fee and Dividend may be just the congressional solution we need to fight climate change. This is a policy that places a steadily-rising fee on the carbon content of fossil fuels. Making these dirty fuels accountable for the damage they do to our society will hasten the transition to cleaner energy — wind and solar, for instance — and cleaner forms of transportation, like electric vehicles.

Returning the revenue from the fee in equal shares to all households will shield Americans from the economic impact of the carbon fee. It also makes the fee revenue neutral, giving it greater appeal to Republicans who want to prevent the government from growing bigger.

One more feature of this policy is the application of border adjustment tariffs on imports from nations that lack an equivalent price on carbon, thereby maintaining a level playing field for American companies. These border adjustments provide a strong incentive for other countries to follow our lead with an effective carbon price.

The conservative Climate Leadership Council has proposed a similar policy. This group includes such distinguished Republicans as former Secretaries of State George Shultz and James Baker as well as former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson.

- Taken from MARK REYNOLDS' article in The Hill, "The Jon Snow of climate change is emerging in Congress"