Boulder CO Approves Carbon Tax in Effort to Reduce Gas Emissions

"BOULDER, Colo., Nov. 14 — Voters in this liberal college town have approved what environmentalists say may be the nation’s first “carbon tax,†intended to reduce emissions of heat-trapping gases. "

"The tax is to pay for the “climate action plan,†efforts to “increase energy efficiency in homes and buildings, switch to renewable energy and reduce vehicle miles traveled,†the city’s environmental affairs manager, Jonathan Koehn, said."

"The tax grew out of efforts by a committee of residents and members of the City Council and Chamber of Commerce to try to enable Boulder to reach goals set by the United Nations Kyoto Protocol, which seeks to curb global warming."

"A program similar to Boulder’s began in Oregon in 2001. There, a 3 percent fee is assessed on electricity bills by the two largest investor-owned utilities, said Michael Armstrong, a policy analyst in the Portland Office of Sustainable Development. "


http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/18/us/18carbon.html