Carbon fee & dividend in action: Canadians now get quarterly checks
Good news: Our neighbors to the north are perfecting their carbon fee and dividend policy! As of this month, Canadians have begun receiving their first quarterly dividend checks from the country’s carbon fee. Before now, Canadians received a rebate on their annual taxes. Moving forward, they will receive direct cash payments. “The first payment will include the first two quarters of the year,” the Global News reported. “Single adults will receive $269.50. A family of four can expect to receive $539.50.” The next quarterly dividend checks, officially called “Climate Action Incentive” payments, will be sent in October and January. The Sudbury Star spoke with Citizens’ Climate’s own Cathy Orlando, who said, “Receiving checks from pollution pricing is literally a dream come true. I want to take this moment to thank all the unsung heroes who made this happen in Canada.” Many of those unsung heroes are CCL volunteers, who have worked for years to help bring about this day. Canada first announced its plan for a nationwide carbon fee and dividend in 2016, and the policy went into effect in 2019. Canada announced the move to quarterly dividends in Jan. 2021, and our volunteers were crucial in making that happen.
In other news this week: • Bipartisan bill makes moves: The bipartisan RISEE Act, one of CCL’s supporting asks, has passed out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Head to our Lobbying Congress forum to find out how our volunteers helped make this happen, and learn what’s next for this bill. • CCL supports Save Our Sequoias: Lawmakers in the House have introduced a bill aimed at protecting giant sequoia trees. CCL has endorsed and posted about the legislation, which is all the more urgent due to recent wildfires near some of these ancient groves. • Carbon pricing in California: In a new blog post, CCL’s research team reviews a few studies about the impact of carbon pricing on California’s environmental justice communities. One paper finds “that disadvantaged communities may have experienced on average a greater decline in emissions since the start of the cap-and-trade program than other communities.” |
