It is a good preview of how these types of policies may be sold to taxpayers. The authors concede, however, that some people will be hurt by the new tax policies. Those who depend on energy intensive industries may find themselves in economic straits. Such measures could be focused on communities that depend on energy-intensive industries. But such adverse effects should not be cause for undue alarm.
Structural change is natural in a capitalist economy.
The study also touts the advantages of tax shifting for New York s industrial planners. State industrial policy has become a hodgepodge of tax credits, infrastructure services and other targeted policies designed to lure businesses to the respective states. The study recommends that states adopt ecological tax reform as a way to simplify existing tax systems and eliminating what many economists see as counterproductive competition between states. The taxes would be fully implemented by 1997, would be assessed on carbon content of fossil fuels and at first point of entry to the state. Scenario I returns the entire carbon tax to taxpayers through reduced traditional taxes.