| Shorttitle: | Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019 |
| Longtitle: | To create a Carbon Dividend Trust Fund for the American people in order to encourage market-driven innovation of clean energy technologies and market efficiencies which will reduce harmful pollution and leave a healthier, more stable, and more prosperous nation for future generations. |
| Enacted By: | 116th |
| Public Law Url: | https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/763 |
| Cite Public Law: | H.R.763 - Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019 |
| Acts Amended: | Internal Revenue Code Clean Air Act |
| Introducedin: | House |
| Introducedby: | Ted Deutch |
| Introduceddate: | January 24, 2019 |
| Committees: | the Committee on Ways and Means, the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Foreign Affairs |
The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019 (H.R. 763) is a bill in the United States House of Representatives that proposes a fee on carbon at the point of extraction to encourage market-driven innovation of clean energy technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The fees are recycled to citizens in monthly dividends. The act was originally introduced in 2018 with bipartisan support from six co-sponsors and died when the 115th congress ended on 3 January 2019.[1] It is principally based on Citizens' Climate Lobby's carbon fee and dividend proposal, and this organization advocates for the bill.[2]
On 24 January 2019, the bill was introduced into the house by Representative Ted Deutch on behalf of himself and six other original cosponsors.[3]
The bill obtained 86 cosponsors but was not voted on. On April 1, 2021, the bill was reintroduced in the 117th Congress as H.R. 2307, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021.[4] [5] On September 27, 2023, the bill was reintroduced in the 118th Congress as H. R. 5744, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2023.[6]
The Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2018 was a proposed 2018 bill that intended to "create a Carbon Dividend Trust Fund for the American people in order to encourage market-driven innovation of clean energy technologies and market efficiencies which will reduce harmful pollution and leave a healthier, more stable, and more prosperous nation for future generations." The bill was originally introduced by Representative Ted Deutch (D-FL) on November 27, 2018, with bipartisan support from 4 co-sponsors.[7] A companion bill was introduced into the United States Senate by Chris Coons (D-DE) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) on December 19, 2018.[8] The bill died when the 115th Congress ended on January 3, 2019. The bill was reintroduced in the 116th Congress as the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2019.
The 2018 bill was intended to:
If passed, the 2019 bill would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to:[9]
It would also make adjustments to the Clean Air Act to limit the Environmental Protection Agency from placing restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions under some conditions.
As of December 17, 2020, the bill has 86 sponsors in the House of Representatives from two parties and 23 states.[10]
| Sponsor | Party | District | Original? | Sponsor since | Relevant committees | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | data-sort-value="Florida 21" | FL-21 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | ||
| Democratic | data-sort-value="California 27" | CA-27 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | Ways and Means Committee | ||
| Democratic | FL-13 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-18 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | Energy and Commerce Committee | |||
| Democratic | IL-03 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | ||||
| Republican | FL-19 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | CA-52 | Yes | January 24, 2019 | Energy and Commerce Committee, Energy Subcommittee | |||
| Democratic | MN-03 | No | January 28, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | GA-04 | No | January 29, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-24 | No | January 30, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | FL-20 | No | February 7, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | PA-15 | No | February 8, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | NY-09 | No | February 11, 2019 | Energy and Commerce Committee (vice chair) | |||
| Democratic | CA-14 | No | February 12, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | IL-09 | No | February 22, 2019 | Energy and Commerce Committee | |||
| Democratic | VA-11 | No | March 4, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | ME-01 | No | March 6, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-11 | No | March 7, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-28 | No | March 8, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MN-02 | No | March 18, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NJ-07 | No | March 21, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | NJ-08 | No | March 21, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | CA-48 | No | March 25, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MA-02 | No | March 25, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-13 | No | March 26, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-39 | No | March 26, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-49 | No | March 27, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-31 | No | April 8, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | WA-10 | No | April 10, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-45 | No | April 12, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | IL-02 | No | April 18, 2019 | Energy and Commerce Committee, Energy Subcommittee | |||
| Democratic | FL-05 | No | April 18, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CT-04 | No | April 25, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MI-09 | No | April 25, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | CA-33 | No | April 29, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | MA-06 | No | May 7, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MD-08 | No | May 9, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | TX-16 | No | May 20, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NY-04 | No | May 23, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NC-04 | No | May 28, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-53 | No | May 28, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NC-12 | No | June 10, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | PA-03 | No | June 10, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | PA-04 | No | June 10, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MS-02 | No | June 11, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MI-05 | No | June 12, 2019 | Ways and Means Committee | |||
| Democratic | TN-09 | No | June 13, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CO-02 | No | June 18, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | IL-07 | No | June 18, 2019 | Ways and Means Committee | |||
| Democratic | MI-14 | No | June 20, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MD-06 | No | June 20, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | PA-08 | No | June 25, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-37 | No | July 5, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | NJ-12 | No | July 9, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MD-02 | No | July 9, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NY-25 | No | July 11, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | WA-06 | No | July 15, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | GA-06 | No | July 17, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CO-07 | No | July 19, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MO-05 | No | August 30, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-30 | No | September 6, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | IL-04 | No | September 16, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NY-03 | No | September 24, 2019 | Ways and Means Committee | |||
| Democratic | CA-46 | No | September 26, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-40 | No | September 26, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NY-06 | No | October 16, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-38 | No | October 21, 2019 | Ways and Means Committee | |||
| Democratic | KY-03 | No | October 29, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NY-05 | No | November 8, 2019 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | GA-02 | No | November 12, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NY-18 | No | November 12, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NJ-10 | No | November 13, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | MO-1 | No | November 13, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-7 | No | December 5, 2019 | ||||
| Democratic | NH-02 | No | January 27, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-32 | No | January 27, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | PA-05 | No | February 10, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | CO-06 | No | February 13, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | FL-24 | No | February 21, 2020 | Foreign Affairs Committee | |||
| Democratic | CA-29 | No | June 22, 2020 | Energy and Commerce Committee | |||
| Democratic | CA-35 | No | August 7, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | IL-05 | No | December 9, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | IN-07 | No | December 9, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | CA-03 | No | December 14, 2020 | ||||
| Democratic | OH-03 | No | December 17, 2020 |
The Center on Global Energy Policy published a comparison of the 2018 version of the bill to other carbon tax proposals.[11]
In the weeks following the reintroduction of the bill, several publications including The Washington Post,[12] the Missoulian,[13] and the Daily Camera[14] published op-eds and editorials in support of the bill.
The bill is also supported by climate scientist and activist James Hansen and former secretary of state George Shultz. The governments (or parts of the governments) of several localities, including the following with more than 50,000 residents, have signed resolutions urging the United States Congress to pass the act:[15]
It has also been publicly supported by several small businesses and nonprofit organizations including Protect Our Winters.
The Environmental Defense Fund called it "an inspiring step in the right direction."[17]
The Center for Biological Diversity published a press release opposing the bill on the basis that its adjustments to the Clean Air Act would "only give us climate disaster."[18]
In April 2019, novelist and leading member of Orange County for Climate Action Roger Gloss posted his opposition to HR 763, noting the lack of annual emissions targets, and the first assessment of whether targets are being met in 2030, the year in which the IPCC says emissions must have already been halved.[19]