For those of us who care about the environment, the current political climate can be extremely discouraging.
However, the members of the Citizen’s Climate Lobby (CCL) believe there is still a way to bring about sustainable policy on a national scale:
Governments will respond to the will of the people provided we tell them what we want. And what we want is a livable world.
This is what Citizens’ Climate Lobby works for. To empower citizens to connect with and influence their members of Congress. To spread the idea that each one of us can address climate change.
Working together we can make this happen.
CCL is a “non-profit, non-partisan, grassroots advocacy organization”, who believes in the power of what they dub Political Will. Simply put, Political Will is what happens when a group gathers together in a support of a single idea.
But what is the idea that CCL is working to organize the voices of our nation around?
Nothing less than what may be the silver bullet of Climate Change Policy: Fee and Dividend
Watch this 2 minute video to see exactly what makes a Fee and Dividend policy so revolutionary.
Fee and Dividend works by placing a tax, or “fee”, on fossil fuels at the point of extraction. This inflates the price of fossil fuels at the very beginning of the supply chain in a way that carries down throughout the market. This makes the use of fossil fuels more expensive (and more realistic) at every step, allowing alternative fuels to become more competitive. This fee would start out small and increase steadily over the next years with the intention of weaning our nation off our poisonous addiction. So far, this sounds like just another Carbon Tax.
What makes a Fee and Dividend policy unique, however, is what is done with the money generated by the tax.
Instead of the tax revenue staying in the hands of the government, the net revenue would be distributed equally to all American household as a monthly dividend. According to CCL, about 2/3rds of Americans would receive more in their divided than they would spend in higher fuel prices. That’s right: a Fee and Dividend policy would actually make you money.
CCL had REMI conduct a study on what impact a Fee and Dividend policy could have on our country. The results were extremely encouraging, predicting a reduction in CO2 emissions to 52% below 1990 levels in 20 years and an economic stimulus that adds 2.8 million jobs to the economy. Not to mention that the reduction in air pollution caused by switching away from fossil fuels would prevent over 230,000 premature deaths. Sounds like a bright future, doesn’t it?
These numbers truly do make a Fee and Dividend policy seem like a one step solution to Climate Change. But, you may ask, what if the study is wrong? What if the policy does not work as predicted and more measures are needed to combat our country’s dependence on fossil fuels?
While changes in policy seldom work as smoothly as predicted, this is no reason to not attempt them at all. If we want a livable world, a change in our energy policy has to be made; inaction simply is not an option.
The Fee and Dividend policy may not be perfect, but it is a step in the right direction, and a step we desperately need to make.
Make your voice heard and help build the Political Will necessary to make Climate Change policy a reality. Together we can make the bright future we hope for into reality.
