Hey folks: Now that I've mostly finished the cartoon book about economics I've been working on (including a section on carbon taxes!) I have lots of time and energy to work on this. Let me know about your availability too... there are lots of projects to work on :)
Status: For better or worse, the hypothetical scenario that our effort is based on seems to be coming true: the WA state legislature appears to have killed cap-and-trade for this year, and despite optimism from Sightline and others I have a hard time seeing serious federal action coming anytime soon. That leaves an opening for our proposal.
Our proposal: There are plenty of policy details to work out, but my belief is that there is general agreement about the major elements of our proposal, i.e., about having a mostly revenue-neutral carbon tax of $30+ per ton of CO2 (e.g., $0.30+ per gallon of gasoline), with revenue devoted to eliminating the state portion of the property tax, offsetting impacts on low-income households, and other features TBD (to be determined).
Next steps: I propose that we start committing to and working towards a 2010 ballot measure. In addition to continuing to get feedback on the proposal and work out policy details, I am going to start asking folks about their willingness to commit time and energy. (No need for money... yet :) So please think about your own constraints and abilities and what it would take to bring you and your friends and colleagues on board!
Next meeting: Thursday May 7, 12-1pm downtown. Agenda TBD.
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