Climate Dividends Ida Kubiszewski 02.12.08
The Cap Upstream cap: limits how much fossil fuels enter the economy Reduced each year… 80% over 40 years Fuel companies bid for permits in competitive auctions
Dividends Equally amount distributed to all Americans MIT study: raise $100 – 500 billion/yr Returns: $1,200 – 6,000 / year to family of 4
Side effects Spur private investment in clean energy Encourages conservation Create jobs Reduction in CO2 Taxed as regular income $100 billion in dividends = $20 billion in federal tax revenue Poor won’t pay tax, rich will pay 30%, middle class somewhere in between
Questions Right now it’s only US, how to get it out to the rest of the world? How to ensure that higher price of permits equals out growing energy prices?