Concerned citizens fanned out across the State Capitol campus the afternoon of April 20. Their mission: Contact as many senators and representatives as possible. Their message: “We need an effective and equitable carbon tax — and we need it this session!”
About 70 people — from Carbon Washington, Audubon Washington, the League of Women Voters and other groups in the ACT NOW coalition — visited legislators and aides in person. Another 60 or so made phone calls from around the state. When the day was over, every legislator in Olympia had received information about ACT NOW and the need to pass a carbon tax this year.
Four bills that include a carbon tax are now before the legislature. The most recent is SB 5930, introduced by Sen. Guy Palumbo. You can read an analysis of this bill by Carbon Washington.
Carbon taxes have also been in the news in recent days:
- Seattle Times: A carbon tax is right for environment and economy
- Seattle Weekly: Carbon Tax Now, or Carbon Tax Later? Some Say It’s Just a Matter of Time
- Seattle Business: A carbon tax makes sense for our environment, economy, and state budget
ACT NOW is not taking a position on any specific policy, but wants to help ensure that legislators put a price on carbon in Washington State this year.
