Events 

Tax Reform and the Environment

Presented by The Tax Policy Center, The World Resources Institute and The Brookings Institution

Friday, June 3, 2005
9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

The Brookings Institution
Falk Auditorium
1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW
Washington, DC

The federal tax code has a significant impact on the environment. Fiscal policy is used to encourage as well as discourage various business activities and consumer decisions. Many of these activities affect environmental quality by influencing how much we consume, how we use natural resources, and how much pollution is released into our air and water. President Bush's recent call for tax reform and the presence of persistent federal budget deficits provide an opportunity for policymakers to consider changes to the tax code that could lead not only to greater simplicity and fiscal responsibility, but also to improved human and environmental health. The Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center and the World Resources Institute assembled this forum to discuss reforms to the tax code that would be both fiscally prudent and environmentally sound. Panelists presented their views and took questions from the audience following the discussion.

Moderator:
WILLIAM GALE
Deputy Director and Arjay and Francis Fearing Miller Chair, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution; Co-Director, Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center

Panelists:
CRAIG HANSON
Senior Associate, World Resources Institute

STEVE ELLIS
Vice President, Taxpayers for Common Sense

GILBERT METCALF
Chair, Department of Economics, Tufts University

Discussants:
WILLIAM FRENZEL
Member, President's Advisory Panel on Federal Tax Reform; Guest Scholar, Brookings Institution; former Member, U.S. House of Representatives

PAUL PORTNEY
President, Resources for the Future