From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, Director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, National Campaign Coordinator
March 15, 2013
The Chesapeake Climate Action Network supports efforts to advance the policy known as “cap and dividend,” first introduced by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME) in December, 2009. Since that time, this bipartisan approach has continued to attract interest and coverage. CCAN continues to produce and distribute this occasional newsletter to keep the clean energy community updated on those developments.
Click here to view past Cap and Dividend Policy Updates.
In This Issue:
#1 Sanders and Boxer introduce ‘fee and dividend’ climate bill; greens tickled pink, by Lisa Hymas
#2 George Shultz Presses Congress to Act on Climate Change, by Ashley Southall, N.Y. Times
#3 The Politics of Climate Change Legislation, from Harvard Magazine
#4 Draft Bill Released by Rep. Waxman and Sen. Whitehouse Would Price Carbon and Reduce Emissions, from Climate Progress
#5 In wake of Democratic proposal, House GOP to float resolution condemning carbon tax, Jean Chemnick, E&E
#6 Battle lines forming on carbon tax, by Carolyn Lochhead
#7 Could Republicans ever support a carbon tax? Bob Inglis thinks so
#1 Sanders and Boxer introduce ‘fee and dividend’ climate bill; greens tickled pink, by Lisa Hymas
“’Under the legislation, a fee on carbon pollution emissions would fund historic investments in energy efficiency and sustainable energy technologies such as wind, solar, geothermal and biomass. The proposal also would provide rebates to consumers to offset any efforts by oil, coal or gas companies to raise prices.’ It’s what green wonks call a ‘fee and dividend’ bill. The Chronicle describes it as a ‘variant on a carbon tax.’ Boxer, who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, says she intends to move the legislation through her committee and to the Senate floor by this summer. Many greens will be rallying behind her, but how many fellow senators will?”
For the full article go to: http://grist.org/climate-energy/sanders-and-boxer-introduce-fee-and-dividend-climate-bill-greens-tickled-pink/
#2 George Shultz Presses Congress to Act on Climate Change, by Ashley Southall, N. Y. Times, March 8
“George P. Shultz, a former Republican cabinet secretary, seems an unlikely figure to fight for climate change, which is largely the political turf of Democrats. But climate change was exactly why Mr. Shultz, who is best remembered as Ronald Reagan’s secretary of state, came to Washington on Friday. . . he said that Congress should pass a fee-and-dividend carbon tax that would remit revenues to consumers. The tax would be revenue-neutral, covering the cost of research and development for alternative energy sources without generating extra income for the government.”
For the full article go to: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/03/08/george-shultz-presses-congress-to-act-on-climate-change/
#3 The Politics of Climate Change Legislation, from Harvard Magazine
”Theda Skocpol said she felt there was plenty of passion in the environmental movement—but stressed that even though members of the Tea Party are also passionate about their causes, ‘The Tea Party is not built on passion.’ What might move Americans in general, she argued, is something that will actually benefit them: a cap with a dividend returned to citizens. During the closing moments of the question-and-answer session that concluded the symposium, Mike Tidwell, director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, shared his experiences of talking to citizens ‘in church basements.’ Rarely do people get behind something they support, he said; usually they act to block something they don’t like. But people ‘do get excited’ about the idea of cap and dividend. Conservative Nebraska farmers know about climate change, and they don’t ‘get’ cap and trade, he explained. They do get cap and dividend, he said, calling that approach ‘the inevitable solution.’
For the full article go to: http://harvardmagazine.com/2013/02/environmentalist-failure-to-pass-cap-and-trade
#4 Draft Bill Released by Rep. Waxman and Sen. Whitehouse Would Price Carbon and Reduce Emissions, from Climate Progress, March 12
“Today, legislators from the House and Senate responded to the President’s call. Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA), Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) released a discussion draft of a bill that would charge polluters for the carbon pollution they release into the air, reducing the pollution responsible for climate change. It suggests a price of $15-30 per ton of carbon dioxide, which is sufficient to significantly reduce pollution. The bill collects the fee from midstream entities that already report greenhouse gas pollution data to the government, so it creates no large new bureaucracy. The draft also seeks comment on the best ways to spend the revenue, including consumer protection and deficit reduction.”
For the full article go to: http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/03/12/1706331/draft-bill-released-by-rep-waxman-and-sen-whitehouse-would-price-carbon-and-reduce-emissions/
#5 In wake of Democratic proposal, House GOP to float resolution condemning carbon tax, Jean Chemnick, E&E, March 13
“While the Scalise-Barton resolution demonstrates the long odds a carbon tax would face in the GOP-controlled House, former Rep. Bob Inglis (R-S.C.) said members of his party might eventually come to accept such a policy, but only if all of the revenue were returned to the U.S. economy. ‘We’re grateful that [Waxman and Whitehouse] have included the only viable option, which is a 100 percent return of the revenue to taxpayers,’ Inglis said in a brief interview, calling any carbon tax that would spend money on government programs — as Cardin suggested — a ‘nonstarter. . . On the conservative side, I believe this must not be about feeding and growing and shielding the government, but about fixing a market distortion and then returning the revenue to the taxpayer,’ he said.”
#6 Battle lines forming on carbon tax, by Carolyn Lochhead
“For a political non-starter, a carbon tax is generating an awful lot of activity on Capitol Hill. On Wednesday, the conservative Republican Study Committee is holding a press conference to slam the idea, headlined by Texas Reps. Joe Barton and Jeb Hensarling and Louisiana chair Steve Scalise, with star billing to anti-tax activist Grover Norquist. What’s catching people’s attention is the ‘fee and dividend’ carbon tax that is remitted back to consumers as a big check each year, based on Alaska’s Permanent Fund. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) is co-sponsoring a version with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT); former Secretary of State and Treasury George Shultz, a Californian who served under Ronald Reagan, promoted the idea on Capitol Hill last week. NASA climate scientis
t James Hansen is also a huge backer, saying that putting a price on carbon may be the only way to prevent catastrophic climate change.
For the full article go to: http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/181432/battle-lines-forming-on-carbon-tax/
#7 Could Republicans ever support a carbon tax? Bob Inglis thinks so, by Brad Plumer, Washington Post
“If you ask Bob Inglis of the Energy & Enterprise Initiative, he thinks Republicans can be persuaded to come around on a carbon tax. It will just take time. And Inglis, a former Republican congressman from South Carolina, thinks he knows just how to sell the idea. Inglis starts with the notion that conservatives will only accept a tax on carbon emissions if the revenue is used to cut taxes elsewhere — say, corporate taxes or income taxes. ‘We have to be absolutely clear that we’re not trying to grow the size of government,’ he says. And the environmental pitch has to be calibrated just so: ‘We’re not talking about regulations or EPA action,’ he adds. ‘All we’re talking about is accounting for the true cost of the fuels we use. And I should mention that we’re not talking about apocalyptic visions of climate change. All we’re talking about is reasonable risk avoidance, the kind that our friends in the insurance industry are now taking cognizance of.’”
For the full article go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/03/14/could-republicans-ever-support-a-carbon-tax-bob-inglis-thinks-so/
CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org.
