Carbon Tax | Econofact

Can a Carbon Tax Cut Emissions Without Hurting the Poor?

By Gilbert Metcalf·September 10, 2020
Tufts University

The Issue:

There is widespread consensus that greenhouse gas emissions from human activity are contributing to rising world temperatures, increasing the frequency of devastating weather events such as hurricanes, fires, floods and droughts. In response, over 3,500 economists have signed a statement supporting the

Would a Carbon Tax Hurt the Poor and the Middle Class? (VIDEO)

By Michael Klein and Gilbert Metcalf·February 13, 2020
Tufts University

This conversation was recorded on August 1, 2019.

What would be the distributional effects of a carbon tax? Gilbert Metcalf (Tufts) and Michael Klein, Executive Editor of EconoFact discuss new research which shows that, faced with a carbon tax, companies are unlikely to pass the resulting cost increases entirely

Carbon Taxes: What Can We Learn From International Experience?

By Gilbert Metcalf·May 3, 2019
Tufts University

The Issue:

Economists have argued for almost one-hundred years that carbon taxes can address the problem of pollution. And the issue has gained increasing urgency with the threat of climate change. In the last 25 years there has been a move from theory to practice. As of early 2018, more than 25 national or subnational

Higher Gasoline Taxes and Infrastructure: An Idea Whose Time has Come?

By Dan Sichel·April 7, 2018
Wellesley College

The Issue:

President Trump recently floated the idea of raising the federal tax on motor fuels by 25 cents per gallon as a way to pay for improving the nation's roads, highways and bridges. Federal taxes on motor fuels (gasoline and diesel) have historically been important sources of funding for highways and mass ...
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Carbon Taxes and U.S. Manufacturing Competitiveness Concerns

By Stefan Koester and Gilbert Metcalf·April 11, 2017
Tufts University

The Issue:

As President Trump begins the process of rolling back Obama Administration environmental regulations like the Clean Power Plan, the question is now what climate change policies are possible under a Republican-controlled Congress. Recently, senior Republican statesmen proposed a $40 a ton carbon tax with ...
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New (Republican) Support for a Carbon Tax

By Gilbert Metcalf·February 10, 2017
Tufts University

The Issue:

Last year was the warmest since 1880 when recordkeeping began. There is widespread scientific support for the role that greenhouse gases play in the trend rise in temperatures. Yet efforts to combat climate change through policy have been contentious. With the 2009 failure of the Waxman-Markey cap and ...
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