Carbon tax would put the brakes on the economy
A January 8 Heritage Foundation article describes the negative economic and social impacts that would arise if a new carbon tax were imposed. Apart from causing a rapid spike in energy prices, the article notes that a $25 carbon tax that increased by 5% per year would,
- Cut incomes by $1,900 per year in 2016 and cause average losses of $1,400 per year out to 2035
- Raise energy bills by more than $500 per year for that same family
- Raise gasoline prices by $0.50 per gallon
- Cause the loss of more than 1 million jobs
Making the impacts even worse, a carbon tax would also heavily impact America’s competitive position in world markets and have no significant impact on worldwide greenhouse gas emissions as the BRIC countries refused to implement similar taxes on their own economies.