Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said yesterday during meetings with EU officials in Brussels that countries such as the U.S. that are regulating carbon dioxide emissions using methods other than carbon pricing should still get credit under the EU system, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Carbon pricing proponents, however, say the EU’s opening move imposing trade barriers should prod the Biden administration and Congress to level the playing field and push for a domestic carbon price.
“The U.S. faces a choice: we can act now to embrace this globally effective approach that enhances the competitiveness of American industries and compels other countries to do their part. Or we can sit idle and have other major economies seize the leadership role in establishing the new global rules around climate and trade,” said Greg Bertelsen, CEO of the Climate Leadership Council, a GOP-led group backed by large oil and gas companies that supports a carbon tax.