An interesting idea…
Getting some green to drive clean; If proposed bill passes, state would rank vehicles based on emissions and tax high polluters, give rebate to low polluters
By Paul Rogers San Jose Mercury News
Ventura County Star (California)
April 21, 2007
SAN JOSE — Call it the Robin Hood approach to global warming.
California drivers who buy new Hummers, Ford Expeditions and other big vehicles that emit high levels of greenhouse gases would pay a fee of up to $2,500.
And drivers who buy more fuel-efficient cars — like the Toyota Prius or Ford Focus — would receive rebates of up to $2,500, straight from the gas-guzzlers' pockets.
That's the provocative proposal from a Silicon Valley legislator whose "Clean Car Discount" bill is gaining momentum, sending car dealers into a tizzy and sparking passions among motorists.
Why? It's the first time California has considered penalizing consumers to limit global warming, rather than just providing incentives such as solar power rebates or special access to the carpool lane for hybrid vehicles.
"If we are going to effectively fight global warming, we are going to have to find a way to get the cleaner cars on the road and the dirtier cars off the road," said Assemblyman Ira Ruskin, D-Los Altos. "We need to have both carrots and sticks."
Ruskin's bill, AB493, won approval of the Assembly Transportation Committee late last month.
The bill has the backing of most major statewide environmental groups, who see it as one of their top priorities in 2007. And the measure received a substantial boost recently when it was endorsed by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, a business organization that includes the major tech companies in Silicon Valley, including IBM, Google, Apple and Cisco.
