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Proposal Details

Proposal ID	668
Proposal	2012 Platform amendment proposal: Eco-Action - Climate Change
Presenter	Sponsored by Eco-Action - Platform Committee
Floor Manager	Budd Dickinson
Phase	Closed
Discussion	05/14/2012 - 05/27/2012
Voting	05/28/2012 - 06/03/2012
Result	Adopted
Presens Quorum	31 0.6666
Consens Quorum	38 0.6666 of Yes and No Votes

Background

The purpose of this amendment is to update the GPUS Ecological Sustainability Platform to reflect developments since adoption of the last GPUS Platform, to improve the readability of the document throughout and to change the bullet points to letters consistent with the rest of the platform.

Proposal

Amend Ecological Sustainability Chapter, Section A. Climate Change, Section 2 Economic Policy for A Safer Climate.

Original language:

A. Climate Change

Economic Policy For A Safer Climate

2. Establish carbon taxes on fossil fuels, to reflect the environmental cost of their extraction and use. Carbon taxes should be applied as far upstream as possible, preferably when possession of the carbon-bearing fuel passes from extraction (for example, coal mine; oil wellhead or tanker; gas wellhead) to the next entity in the supply chain (for example, coal shipper or utility; oil refiner or importer; natural gas pipeline). Offset potential regressivity for lower income individuals by cutting income taxes and/or other approaches. Carbon taxes are better than market-based policies because they lead to more predictable carbon pricing, are more transparent, take effect more quickly, and do not enable profiteering by the financial industry.

3. Eliminate subsidies for fossil fuels, nuclear power, biomass and waste incineration, and biofuels. We must also acknowledge that the bulk of our military budget is, in fact, an indirect subsidy for oil and gas production.

4. Prevent perverse incentives arising from higher carbon prices. By putting an increased price on carbon, all energy sources that do not have the carbon price imposed look relatively more attractive: nuclear power, biomass and biofuels are all in that category. Carbon pricing could easily result in massive deforestation to produce additional biofuels that have suddenly become relatively cheap and economically attractive. In addition to pricing carbon, we must mandate real clean solutions.

Proposed Change:

A. Global Climate Change

2. Economic Policy For A Safer Climate

a. Enact a Fee & Dividend system on fossil fuels to enable the free market to include the environmental costs of their extraction and use. These fees shall be applied as far upstream as possible, either when fuel passes from extraction to refining, distribution or consumption; or when it first enters the United States' jurisdiction. The carbon fee will initially be small, a dime per kilogram of carbon, to avoid creating a shock to the economy. The fee will be increased by 10% each year that global atmospheric carbon dioxide content is greater than 350 ppm, decreased 10% each year it's less than 300 ppm, and repealed entirely when it falls below 250 ppm.

b. Although imported fossil fuel has no more impact on global climate change than domestic, importing petroleum and natural gas has a catastrophic impact on American foreign policy and the American economy. We will enact this same fee on imported fossil fuels a second time to give the free market an incentive to wean America off foreign oil & gas.

c. The Green Party calls for elimination of subsidies for fossil fuels, nuclear power, biomass and waste incineration and biofuels. We must also acknowledge that the bulk of our military budget is, in fact, an indirect subsidy for oil & gas corporations.

d. To prevent perverse incentives arising from higher carbon prices, the Green Party mandates clean fuels in addition to pricing carbon. Otherwise dirty energy sources like nuclear power, biomass and biofuels that are not subject to carbon pricing will become economically competitive.

Resources

IMPLEMENTATION / TIMELINE / RESOURCESā€Ø
Approval of this proposal will amend the 2012 Draft Platform, to be presented for approval at the 2012 Presidential Nominating Convention.

References

2010 Platform: http://www.gp.org/committees/platform/2010/index.phpā€Ø
Proposition 636: http://gp.org/cgi-bin/vote/propdetail?pid=636

CONTACT
ā€Øā€ØPlatform Committeeā€ØJan Martell, co-chair, 919-682-2472, ninth.st@frontier.comā€Ø
Bruce Hinkforth, co-chair, 262-569-1370, bhinkforth@milwpc.com
ā€ØSection editor: Tim Willard, dravidic@yahoo.com

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