Note to Abbott and Harper: THIS carbon tax will add jobs
SAN DIEGO, JUNE 11, 2014 – Responding to pronouncements from the Australian and Canadian prime ministers that carbon taxes will kill jobs, Citizens Climate Lobby points to a new economic study showing that a carbon tax will actually create millions of jobs in the coming decade if the revenue from that tax is returned to households.
Earlier this week, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper heavily criticized the use of carbon taxes to curb the emission of heat-trapping gases that cause global warming.
“I’ve always been against a carbon tax or an emissions trading “scheme” because it harms our economy without necessarily helping the environment,” Abbott told reporters.
But a new study from Regional Economic Models, Inc (REMI) shows that a steadily-rising tax on fossil fuels in the United States, with revenue returned to households, will reduce carbon-dioxide emissions 33 percent by 2025 while adding 2.1 million American jobs. After 10 years, the recycled revenue would add $80 billion annually to U.S. gross domestic product.
“You don’t have to sacrifice jobs to cut greenhouse gas emissions,” added Mark Reynolds, executive director of Citizens Climate Lobby. “This study shows that with the right kind of carbon tax, you can add jobs to the economy. We’d be happy to arrange a briefing for Abbott and Harper to show them the good news.”
Since 1980, Regional Economic Models, Inc. (REMI) has provided economic impact studies for governmental and private-sector clients including the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC), consulting firms Booz Allen Hamilton and Ernst & Young, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
Earlier this year, reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the U.S. National Climate Assessment highlighted the disastrous impact of global warming already being felt around the world and in the U.S. Without concerted efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, warming is expected to exceed levels beyond which societies will be able to manage or adapt.
“Clearly, inaction on global warming is no longer an option,” Reynolds said. “Until now, though, the assumption has been that we had to choose between the economy and the climate. That assumption is no longer valid. The REMI study shows we can take the required action without dragging down our economy. Leaders like prime ministers Abbott and Harper should now be encouraged to embrace this market-based solution.”
Contact: Steve Valk, 404.769.7461,
A copy of the REMI study can be downloaded here:
https://citizensclimatelobby.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/REMI-carbon-tax-report-62141.pdf
3-page summary of report from CCL Legislative Director Danny Richter:
https://citizensclimatelobby.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/REMI-National-SUMMARY.pdf
An Archive of the June 9th Media Briefing + Q&A can be viewed here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7UnfPigk4s&feature=youtu.be
REMI author Scott Nystrom available at , (617) 967-0571
