Great article to post on this subject.
And timely since the Senate is now debating the Lieberman-Warner Climate Change Act this week. The Heritage Foundation has an excellent, but lengthy, analysis on the costs of implementing this policy change. I don't think that we can afford to implement this plan without being driven to further de-industrialize our nation (which should make the commie-lib tree-hugging enviromentalism cultists happy). And by the way this is the infamous "cap and trade" plan that McCain is supporting too.
Here are a few tidbits regarding economic costs and how they are estimated to affect all of us:
The impact on the overall economy is reflected in cumulative gross domestic product (GDP) losses estimated at $1.7 trillion (with generous assumptions) to $4.8 trillion (with more realistic assumptions) by 2030. The single-year GDP losses would range from $111 billion to $436 billion, or $949 to $3,726 per household for each of the nation's 117 million households. Thus, the annual costs of the Climate Security Act would significantly exceed the Department of Homeland Security's 2007 expenditures of $43 billion and could also exceed the $155 billion spent on highways at all levels of government in 2005.
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After-tax incomes decline by $47 billion to $120 billion in 2015, or $402 to $1,026 per household. Declines in consumption average $54 billion to $113 billion over the forecast period, or $462 to $966 per household annually.
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America's Climate Security Act would spark a temporary increase in employment in the first few years as regulated companies invest heavily to comply. After that, however, the bill causes job losses that are expected to exceed 500,000 before 2030 even under the most optimistic assumptions.
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While the Lieberman–Warner bill lowers many household incomes, it raises the cost of living, particularly by raising energy prices. To meet the bill's targets, consumer energy demand must be driven down, which is achieved through higher prices. The price per gallon of gasoline is expected to increase by at least 29 percent by 2030: about $1.10 more per gallon based on current prices. By 2030, average household electricity costs are also expected to increase by $647 annually, and natural gas is expected to increase by $303.
As noted, Lieberman–Warner operates like an energy tax, and since low-income households spend a larger percentage of income on energy, the tax is very regressive.
Here's a link to the entire analysis for those interested in reading it:
http://www.heritage.org/Research/EnergyandEnvironment/bg2140.cfm
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