Carbon Fee and Dividend Laser Talk

Carbon Fee and Dividend is the policy proposal created by Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) to account for the costs of burning fossil fuels. It’s the policy that climate scientists and economists alike say is the best first step to reduce the likelihood of catastrophic climate change from global warming.

Our carbon fee and dividend proposal [1] works like this:

1. A fee is placed on fossil fuels at the source (well, mine, port of entry). This fee starts at $15 per ton of CO₂ equivalent emissions, and increases steadily each year by $10.
2. 100% of the net fees are returned to American households on an equal basis. Under this plan about 2/3 of all households would break even or receive more in their dividend checks than they would pay in higher prices due to the fee, thereby protecting the middle class and lower-income households [2].
3. A border tariff adjustment is placed on goods imported from, or exported to, countries without an equivalent price on carbon. This adjustment would both discourage businesses from relocating to where they can emit more CO₂ and encourage other nations to adopt an equivalent price on carbon.

A predictably increasing carbon price will send a clear market signal which will unleash entrepreneurs and investors in the new clean-energy economy.