Economists, former Fed leaders unite over carbon tax
Former Federal Reserve chairs and nearly 30 Nobel Laureate economists have united in a bipartisan support for a carbon tax as way to address climate change.
Ben Bernanke (R), Alan Greenspan (R), Paul Volcker (D), and Janet Yellen (D), are among the 45 economists who signed a statement published in the Wall Street Journal that calls for “immediate national action” to combat climate change.
“A carbon tax offers the most cost-effective lever to reduce carbon emissions at the scale and speed that is necessary,” the statement read. “All the revenue should be returned directly to U.S. citizens through equal lump-sum rebates.”
Oil and coal businesses that release carbon into the atmosphere would be subject to a tax. The proposal calls for an initial tax of $40 per ton of emissions that would increase yearly until the emissions reduction standards are met.
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The statement was organized by the Climate Leadership Council formed in 2017 and backed by corporations such as Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips and Unilever.