全美45位頂尖經濟學家（包括27位諾貝爾獎獲得者、美聯儲3位前主席）2019年1月16日在華爾街日報發表關于以碳稅應對氣候變化的公開信，中文翻譯如下（英語原文附后）：


全球氣候變化是一個嚴重的問題，需要立即采取國家行動。以合理的經濟原則為指導，我們共同提出以下政策建議。

一、碳稅提供了最具成本效益的杠桿，以必要的規模和速度減少碳排放。通過糾正一個眾所周知的市場失靈，碳稅將發出強有力的價格信號，利用市場的無形之手引導經濟參與者走向低碳未來。

二、碳稅應該逐年增加，直到達到減排目標為止；同時確保碳稅收入的中性，以避免對政府規模的爭論。持續上漲的碳價將鼓勵技術創新和大規模的基礎設施發展，還將加速低碳商品和服務的傳播。

三、足夠穩定且逐步增加的碳稅將取代各種效率較低的碳法規。用價格信號代替繁瑣的法規將促進經濟增長，并為企業長期投資清潔能源技術提供所需的監管確定性。

四、為防止碳泄漏并保護美國的競爭力，應建立基于邊境的碳補償系統。這一系統將確保高能效的美國公司在全球的競爭力，并激勵其他國家采用類似的碳定價。

五、為了最大限度地提高碳稅上漲的公平性和政治可行性，所有碳稅收入都應通過平等的一次性回扣直接返還給美國公民。大多數美國家庭，包括最脆弱的家庭都將獲益，所獲得的“碳紅利”將超過能源價格的提高。

公開信英文全文：

Global climate change is a serious problem calling for immediate national action. Guided by sound economic principles, we are united in the following policy recommendations.

I. A carbon tax offers the most cost-effective lever to reduce carbon emissions at the scale and speed that is necessary. By correcting a well-known market failure, a carbon tax will send a powerful price signal that harnesses the invisible hand of the marketplace to steer economic actors towards a low-carbon future.

II. A carbon tax should increase every year until emissions reductions goals are met and be revenue neutral to avoid debates over the size of government. A consistently rising carbon price will encourage technological innovation and large-scale infrastructure development. It will also accelerate the diffusion of carbon-efficient goods and services.

III. A sufficiently robust and gradually rising carbon tax will replace the need for various carbon regulations that are less efficient. Substituting a price signal for cumbersome regulations will promote economic growth and provide the regulatory certainty companies need for long-term investment in clean-energy alternatives.

IV. To prevent carbon leakage and to protect U.S. competitiveness, a border carbon adjustment system should be established. This system would enhance the competitiveness of American firms that are more energy-efficient than their global competitors. It would also create an incentive for other nations to adopt similar carbon pricing.

V. To maximize the fairness and political viability of a rising carbon tax, all the revenue should be returned directly to U.S. citizens through equal lump-sum rebates. The majority of American families, including the most vulnerable, will benefit financially by receiving more in “carbon dividends” than they pay in increased energy prices.

George Akerlof, Robert Aumann, Angus Deaton, Peter Diamond, Robert Engle, Eugene Fama, Lars Peter Hansen, Oliver Hart, Bengt Holmstr?m, Daniel Kahneman, Finn Kydland, Robert Lucas, Eric Maskin, Daniel McFadden, Robert Merton, Roger Myerson, Edmund Phelps, Alvin Roth, Thomas Sargent, Myron Scholes, Amartya Sen, William Sharpe, Robert Shiller, Christopher Sims, Robert Solow, Michael Spence and Richard Thaler are recipients of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.

Paul Volcker is a former Federal Reserve chairman.

Martin Baily, Michael Boskin, Martin Feldstein, Jason Furman, Austan Goolsbee, Glenn Hubbard, Alan Krueger, Edward Lazear, N. Gregory Mankiw, Christina Romer, Harvey Rosen and Laura Tyson are former chairmen of the president’s Council of Economic Advisers.

Ben Bernanke, Alan Greenspan and Janet Yellen have chaired both the Fed and the Council of Economic Advisers.

George Shultz and Lawrence Summers are former Treasury secretaries.
More information is available at www.clcouncil.org