Put price on carbon in reconciliation bill

Twenty years ago, in response to the horror of 9/11, Americans became unified over the need to address terrorism. Today we face a number of challenges, including the COVID crisis, climate change and an uneven economy. Instead of coming together to overcome these challenges, we find ourselves fighting each other. We can't seem to agree on what the problem is, and we struggle to make progress because solutions are couched as political hard lines.

When it comes to climate change, there is one solution that actually works and has bipartisan support. Placing a slowly rising price on carbon fuels at their source and returning revenue to consumers has been shown by numerous studies to be effective in reducing our use of fossil fuels without hurting the economy.

Such an option is currently being discussed in the Senate budget reconciliation process. This approach avoids delays and court challenges associated with regulations and standards and is preferred by conservatives because it doesn't interfere with individual choices.

As we live through increasingly severe storms, floods, fires, and droughts we can no longer afford to ignore climate change. All Americans are affected regardless of where we live, and we need to come together in support of an effective, easily understood and easily implemented solution. Please let Senators Durbin and Duckworth and your Congressional Representative know that you support carbon pricing as a key part of the budget reconciliation process.

Thomas Rausch

Glen Ellyn