Monday, January 19, 2009
What Fits Better -- A Cap Or A Tax?
What's the wisest way to cut America's emissions of greenhouse gases: a cap-and-trade program or a carbon tax? Does the recession affect your thinking about which method is preferable or achievable?
Barack Obama, Democratic congressional leaders, and most environmental advocates want Congress to adopt an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to curb climate change pollution. Last week, the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a coalition of business and green leaders, released a blueprint for setting up a trading program.
But carbon taxes are advocated by a diverse group of economists and energy experts - including Al Gore, NASA scientist Jim Hansen, and Exxon's chief executive Rex Tillerson. What's the better policy tool for slashing emissions?
-- Margaret Kriz, NationalJournal.com
