Letter: I-732 is simply a gasoline tax and nothing more

The Legislature is scheduled to decide on I-732, a state carbon tax initiative sponsored by an organization called Carbon Washington.

A few things to share from Carbon WA’s website. It states the tax has been a success elsewhere but only names British Columbia. In fact, except in Sweden (which uses few fossil fuels), carbon taxes have been a failure everywhere, including British Columbia. British Columbia placed a five-year moratorium on its carbon tax in 2012 as the tax was judged an economic failure. Yet Carbon WA continues to use this proven failure as an example of success.

Also, nowhere on Carbon WA’s website does it actually say the tax will reduce global warming. That’s because it won’t. It would have no measurable impact on global warming at all. It passes a tax on coal without mentioning that there’s only one coal plant in our state and it’s already scheduled for closure under EPA laws.

Thus I-732 offers nothing but a tax of no known outcome or benefit while offering no alternative energy. I-732 is simply a gasoline tax and nothing more.

This story was originally published March 5, 2016 at 4:29 PM with the headline "Letter: I-732 is simply a gasoline tax and nothing more."