Paying for Pollution

Download or read book Paying for Pollution written by Gilbert E. Metcalf and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a text written for a general audience with no special knowledge of economics or environmental science, a prominent economist makes the case for the United States to enact a carbon tax. While a policy to reduce emissions has costs, the work shows in simple and direct language that failing to act on climate change is more costly. Other possible ways to reduce emissions are reviewed and the argument made that a carbon tax is preferable to those alternatives. The text also explains how Congress should design and implement the tax and how Congress should ensure that the carbon tax revenue is returned to taxpayers. Common objections to a carbon tax are addressed, showing that either these come from a misunderstanding of the science of climate change and how a carbon tax works or they can be easily addressed in carbon tax legislation.