Quibbling Over Carbon Metrics: Senator Cramer’s Ill-Advised, Unauthorized Carbon Tax Trojan Horse

March 31, 2026

The U.S. may stumble into a carbon taxed future due to a provision furtively inserted into the House committee report accompanying the energy and water appropriations bill that was part of the “minibus,” enacted in late January. The provision, for which Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) claims credit, directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to estimate the average carbon emission intensities of US- and foreign-made goods. That may seem harmless, but it is potentially a seed of considerable mischief.

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