Commentary
California’s aggressive climate policies increase our cost of living. Taxes, regulations, and the cost of acquiring emission permits under cap-and-trade have resulted in gasoline and electricity costs far above national averages.
Many Californians believe high energy prices are worth it to prevent climate catastrophe. But the truth is that California climate action will not save us.
Our state is only responsible for about 0.7 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, so state policies cannot move the needle very much. Further, while emissions have been falling in California, they have fallen as fast or even faster in other states that have not implemented costly climate policies. For example, greenhouse gas emissions declined by 22 percent in Ohio since 1990 compared to a 12 percent drop in California….