Government Energy Policy, Business and Technology

After Carbon Tax Fails in Washington, Focus Turns to 9 Other States

Governing: Earlier this year, Washington looked poised to become the first state in the nation to pass a tax on carbon pollution. Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee had made it one of his top priorities, and the state legislature looked ready to take the plunge. But last month, Inslee conceded that Senate Bill 6203 didn’t have the “one or two votes” needed for passage.

This wasn’t Washington’s first pass at a carbon tax, which is typically used to reduce carbon pollution by placing a tax or fee on either fossil fuels or emissions. Voters soundly rejected a ballot measure in 2016 after the state’s major environmental, labor and liberal groups came out against it -- largely because of disagreements over how the tax revenue would be spent.

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