Carbon Tax Center

Time Is Now for Concrete Emissions-Reduction Plans

12/31/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

Time Is Now for Concrete Emissions-Reduction Plans (Waterloo Record)

Genuine Progress, or So Much ‘Balihoo’?

12/28/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

Genuine Progress, or So Much ‘Balihoo’? (Info Change India)

It’s Clear: Canadians Want Action

12/28/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

It’s Clear: Canadians Want Action (Toronto Star – Op Ed)

CO2 Targets Enshrined in Law- But at What Cost

12/28/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

CO2 Targets Enshrined in Law – But at What Cost (Vancouver Sun – Op Ed)

Happy New Year from the Carbon Tax Center!

12/27/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

We established the Carbon Tax Center in January 2007. As we look back on our first year, we are thrilled by what we’ve accomplished.

CTC has established a reputation as the go-to web site for objective, non-partisan information on carbon taxes, with hundreds of hits almost every day. We have participated in conferences and debates in New York, Washington and Boston, we have appeared on national television, and we’ve been featured in newspapers, magazines and blogs. Congressional staff, academics, students and interested citizens of all stripes and from many countries have all turned to our site to get up to speed on a topic that is going to become increasingly vital as Congress and a new President grapple with reducing greenhouse gas emissions and limiting the damage from climate change.

The good news is two-fold. One, CTC has established a very solid foundation. Two, there is widespread support for revenue-neutral carbon taxes across the political spectrum from economists, business leaders, pundits and other opinion leaders. Just take a look at our Supporters page.

But we are not naïve. We know that powerful polluters who use the atmosphere as a free dumping ground are not going to give up that entitlement without a struggle. We know that cap-and-trade has well-connected advocates, many of them with a strong economic self-interest to favor their second-best alternative over carbon taxes. We know that carbon tax opponents have tremendous financial resources they will exploit to maintain their advantages.

And we are mindful that the “T” word is unpopular with politicians. Fortunately, awareness is growing that “putting a price on carbon” is an essential element of any successful strategy to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. While debate continues over the two basic ways to put a price on carbon, a carbon tax or cap-and-trade, we remain convinced that the advantages of carbon taxes are becoming increasingly clear.

A legislated price on carbon is unlikely before a new Congress and President take office, providing time for careful examination of the relative merits of a carbon tax and cap-and-trade. We intend to use the time to frame the choice between an equitable revenue-neutral carbon tax and cap-and-trade schemes that provide huge windfalls to polluting industries and the financial community. This will help voters and elected officials grasp the huge benefits of the prompt reductions in greenhouse gas emissions that will result from an easily implemented revenue-neutral carbon tax, compared to the excruciatingly slow reductions that would result from the endlessly tendentious process of implementing a cap-and-trade scheme.

CTC intends to play a central role in the ongoing debate. To do so, we need your generous financial support. As you make your end-of-year contributions, please think of the Carbon Tax Center and click our Donate Now button or click here for instructions on making a contribution.

Thanks and Happy New Year!

Daniel Rosenblum
Charles Komanoff
Co-Directors

Photo: Peter Bowers / Flickr

Clean-Energy Crusader Pushes Tax on Carbon Dioxide

12/27/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

Clean-Energy Crusader Pushes Tax on Carbon Dioxide (Colorado Springs Independent)

High Dollar Can Spark Restructuring

12/24/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

High Dollar Can Spark Restructuring (Toronto Star)

As Earth Warms Up, Tropical Virus Moves to Italy

12/23/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

As Earth Warms Up, Tropical Virus Moves to Italy (New York Times)

Cap and Trade versus Carbon Tax – Kenneth Green of the American Enterprise Institute

12/23/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

Cap and Trade versus Carbon Tax – Kenneth Green of the American Enterprise Institute at the AIER Global Climate Change Conference  (YouTube)

Ethics and Modeling: Putting Ramsey Model-Based Climate Change Assessments in Perspective

12/22/2007 by Daniel Rosenblum

Ethics and Modeling: Putting Ramsey Model-Based Climate Change Assessments in Perspective (ClimateEthics.org)