To the editor:
On June 4, 25 Utah Legislators published an op-ed in the Deseret News entitled âRepublicans need to engage in climate politics,â endorsing the concept of carbon fee and dividend as a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. From the op-ed: âWe support a carbon dividends approach that puts a fee on carbon emissions and returns all the money to the American people in dividend checks. This approach does not require heavy-handed government oversight. The fee gives the markets an incentive to move to cleaner technologies, while the dividend protects families from the effect of higher energy prices. Most families should come out financially ahead, and they will be rewarded for reducing emissions however they choose. ⦠Carbon dividends will also put American manufacturers on a level playing field with the rest of the world by applying the carbon fee to goods imported from countries that arenât doing their part to reduce emissions. American manufacturing is among the cleanest in the world, but right now gets no competitive advantage from that, as our regulations incentivize manufacturers to leave the country. A border carbon adjustment will reward environmental stewardship and position our manufacturers to grow and create jobs without giving other countries a free pass to pollute. We must continue to lead the world by creating better policy.