To the Editor:

President Biden set the ambitious goal of reducing US carbon emissions to 50 percent by 2030 and net zero by 2050. According to the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, this is in line with the necessary global emission reductions needed to keep warming to 1.5 degrees for a relatively safe future. But how can we actually make it happen?

Carbon fee and dividend legislation—which puts a price on carbon pollution and rebates the money to American households—is recommended by nearly all leading American economists as the most effective and equitable way to reduce carbon emissions. This policy alone will reduce US emissions by 90 percent by 2050 and can easily be combined with complementary policies to achieve net zero. It will also put more money in people’s pockets (especially in low-income and marginalized communities), incentivize similar policies in other countries and save hundreds of thousands of lives from reduced air pollution.

Carbon fee and dividend is being seriously considered as part of the budget reconciliation package in the Senate, as well as a stand-alone bill in the House. Please ask your representatives in Congress to support this measure at cclusa.org/write.

Sincerely,

Katharine Gage ’25