Nonpartisan Policy Group Says Well-Designed Cap and Trade System Can Protect Climate and Consumers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Tony Kreindler, Environmental Defense, 202-572-3378 or 202-210-5791 (cell)

(Washington – October 16) The nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities today issued an analysis confirming that climate change policy can effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions and at the same time generate ample revenue to avoid hardship for low-income households.

According to CBPP, a well-designed cap and trade system can slow global warming while protecting consumers and workers in industries that might be impacted by climate policy. CBPP estimated that the revenue generated by auctioning just 14% of the emissions allowances under a cap and trade system would be sufficient to shield vulnerable households.

“That means that we can have a strong climate policy and afford to protect the most vulnerable among us,” said Steve Cochran, national climate campaign director at Environmental Defense. “We appreciate the center’s focus on solutions, and the use of auction revenues to manage disproportionate burdens where they might occur, particularly among those least able to afford it.”

“At the same time, we shouldn’t lose sight of something this analysis does not consider — namely, the enormous impact climate change could have on the poor if we fail to act,” Cochran added.