The skepticism over the a carbon-tax initiative, I-732, is coming from Democrats, not Republicans. At a legislative session with the press, the top two Democrats in the Legislature both expressed concerns about the possibility that Carbon Washington's supposedly revenue-neutral measure would actually cost the state money.
House Speaker Frank Chopp said he has concerns but he wants to see how the next round of analysis of its revenue numbers comes out. Sen. Sharon Nelson said the latest analysis by legislative staff suggests that it would take about $400 million from the general fund, adding, "That is not acceptable."
When questions first arose late last month, Carbon Washington's co-founder Yoram Bauman told the Seattle Times that he was confident the proposal is "approximately revenue neutral." The initiative, which will go to voters in November if lawmakers don't pass it, would impose a carbon tax while cutting sales and business and occupation taxes.
Two Republican leaders said nothing. The party has expressed strong concerns about imposing new costs on employers in the energy field every time carbon-emission limits or taxes have come up.
