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Sunday, August 8, 2010

Carbon tax recommended to President's Deficit Commission

At least one person has suggested to President Obama's Deficit Commission that a carbon tax be enacted to both reduce the deficit and debt and to reduce carbon emissions.

Gilbert E. Metcalf, Professor of Economics at Tufts University, submitted a 6-page proposal that provides a clear and concise rationale for the suggestion. Some of the additional advantages Dr. Metcalf sees with a carbon tax is that it would eliminate the need for creating tax incentives to promote renewable energy and it could prevent the need for "inefficient" regulation of carbon emissions.

He suggests that that a carbon tax start "in 2015 at $30 per ton CO2e and
growing at an annual rate of 5 percent plus inflation."

A summary and link to his paper can be found here.

What do you think?

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