Level: Advanced
Author(s): Desmond Orsinelli, PE CCP CEP
Venue: 2017 AACE International Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL
Abstract: Humans rely on a stable climate currently at risk due to human emissions. This paper reviews the cost of proposed legislation that would place a small, but annually increasing fee on fossil fuels (on a $/ton of greenhouse gas emissions basis) and place a similar fee on emission intensive imports. The collected money would be “revenue neutral”, that is, not congressional revenue. Instead it is assumed revenue generated by the fee would be cut into equal monthly checks to each household in the IRS database. An economic model of the first 20 years under such legislation is reviewed, and compared with other studies, and to British Columbia’s real world example. What would happen to an economy weaned off fossil fuels? And, how would it affect the cost of living?
Author(s): Desmond Orsinelli, PE CCP CEP
Venue: 2017 AACE International Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL
Abstract: Humans rely on a stable climate currently at risk due to human emissions. This paper reviews the cost of proposed legislation that would place a small, but annually increasing fee on fossil fuels (on a $/ton of greenhouse gas emissions basis) and place a similar fee on emission intensive imports. The collected money would be “revenue neutral”, that is, not congressional revenue. Instead it is assumed revenue generated by the fee would be cut into equal monthly checks to each household in the IRS database. An economic model of the first 20 years under such legislation is reviewed, and compared with other studies, and to British Columbia’s real world example. What would happen to an economy weaned off fossil fuels? And, how would it affect the cost of living?