NTF issue paper: cong208.doc. 10-21.
NEBRASKA TAXPAYERS FOR FREEDOM ISSUE PAPER:
LOBBY TO STOP THE CARBON TAX.
BACKGROUND. Infiltrated into the huge Biden Regime spending bill is an effort to levy a carbon tax on all Americans to help pay for this enormous spending on items including bogus climate change legislation. The tax would target all carbon released from fossil fuels like oil, diesel, natural gas, and coal. This tax would mean, for families and businesses, a spike in energy prices for gas at the pump, electricity, natural gas, heating oil, other utility bills, and food. The tax would provide welfare payments to poor families to shield them from a rise in energy costs related to tacking a price on carbon.
RESCUE BILL. House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (LA.) and Rep. David McKinley (W.VA.) introduced H. Con. Res. 34 to prevent the carbon tax. Bill proponents warn that this tax would harm families and small businesses and reverse course from progress made toward achieving U.S. energy independence. Scalise says his resolution will assist the Republican plan to make America energy-dominant again, saying “I applaud President Trump for reversing eight years of failed energy policy and finally putting America on a strong path to energy dominance and economic security for all Americans.” Hardest hit, the elderly and those with limited incomes. The tax would increase the cost of all goods manufactured in the U.S. Companies would move more jobs and factories overseas. It would impose a disproportionate burden on specific industries and jobs and geographic regions, further hindering our global competitiveness. A carbon tax would encourage competitive development overseas in nations that do not impose such an exorbitant tax burden. The Energy Information Administration states the share of energy consumption during 2019 in the U.S. derived from fossil fuels equaled 80%. Exploration for and development of fossil fuels has increased production of U.S. energy resources on private and federal land, which greatly increased job growth and private capital investment. Our energy policies should encourage continued private energy innovation and development and not increase the tax burden on manufacturers, say co-sponsors.
SUPPORTERS. The American Energy Alliance, the American Farm Bureau, Citizens Against Government Waste, Americans for Tax Reform, Texas Public Policy Foundation, the Heartland Institute, and Freedom Works support the bill.
WHY LOBBY. Taxing our most productive energy sources now would return us to the depths of the pandemic recession. Voters continually show reluctance to pay for the leftist greenie expensive global warming agenda with a federal energy tax. We must re-establish our energy independence, established under the Trump Administration, and not rely on foreign and hostile nations to supply our energy needs. The Congressional Budget Office analysis states, “A carbon tax would increase the prices of fossil fuels in direct proportion to their carbon content. Higher fuel prices, in turn, would raise production costs and ultimately drive up prices for goods and services throughout the economy.” Agriculture is an energy-intensive sector, and a carbon tax levied on NE farmers and ranchers would devastate them. The tax redistributes money to pet Democrat technologies like electric cars, crushes state sovereignty, and undermines electric reliability. A carbon tax is a policy with one definable goal, to raise the cost of traditional, reliable, affordable sources of energy, a congressional coalition letter states. This Socialist Democrat tax would raise our gas prices from $1-$2 per gallon. A study commissioned by the National Association of Manufacturers found that a carbon tax could destroy 4-20 million American jobs. It would reduce purchasing power and wages.
TAKE ACTION NOW. Passage of H. Con. Res. 34 would safeguard our standards of living, savings, and free market choice of fuels. It will help restore our energy independence and reliability in all kinds of weather conditions. It will prevent the inflationary rise in consumer goods and services. Using the above content, lobby your representative to support H. Con. Res. 34 and join our NTF Congress Watch Project.
Research, documentation, and analysis for this issue paper done by Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom. This material copyrighted by Nebraska Taxpayers for Freedom, with express prior permission granted for its use by other groups in the NE Conservative Coalition Network. 10-21. C