The Congressional Budget Office Wants To Put A Price On Air Pollution

In a recent report, the CBO suggested that lawmakers "view a carbon tax as a reflection of society's willingness to pay to reduce the risk of potentially very expensive damage in the future." In other words, while dirty, last-century fossil fuels may be cheap in the short term – the long term the cost to our health and environment will be monumental. The CBO projected that a carbon tax of twenty dollars per metric ton would bring in over a trillion dollars in new revenue and cut carbon dioxide emissions by about eight percent over the next decade. This policy would finally put a price on the damage that carbon pollution is doing to our environment. It would also level the playing field, and allow green energy technology to compete with over-subsidized oil giants. It's time that we start accounting for the true cost of burning fossil fuels. Call Congress and tell them to take the CBOs suggestion – implement a carbon tax and end this de facto subsidy for big oil.