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- 1 - RESOLUTION NO. 21-14 A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Whitefish, Montana, urging the United States Congress to enact the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021 (H.R.2307). WHEREAS, in April of 2018, the City of Whitefish adopted a Climate Action Plan as a foundation to make the transition to a clean energy economy and improve local resilience to climate change impacts; and WHEREAS, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act (H.R.2307), a bi-partisan bill introduced in the U.S. Congress on April 1, 2021, is consistent with the goals of the Climate Action Plan; and WHEREAS, in October of 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change, issued a special report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels in October 2018 warning that global warming is likely to reach 1.5°C between 2030 and 2052 if it continues to increase at the current rate; and WHEREAS, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change also reported we have only until 2030 to make massive and unprecedented changes to global energy infrastructure to limit global warming to moderate levels and reduce the risk of extreme drought, wildfires, floods, and food shortages; and WHEREAS, in November of 2018, the Fourth Annual Climate Assessment, a congressionally mandated report by the U.S. Global Research Program, was issued and reported the impacts of climate change are already being felt in communities across the country, and that more frequent and intense extreme weather and climate-related events, as well as changes in average climate conditions, are expected to continue to damage infrastructure, ecosystems, and social systems that provide essential benefits to communities; and WHEREAS, conservative estimates by the world's climate scientists state that to achieve climate stabilization and avoid climate change, emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) must be brought to 80-95% below 1990 levels by 2050; and WHEREAS, at present, the environmental, health, and social costs of carbon emissions are not included in prices paid for fossil fuels, but rather those externalized costs are borne directly and indirectly by all Americans and global citizens; and WHEREAS, to begin to correct this market failure, Congress can enact the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021 (H.R.2307) to assess a national carbon fee on fossil fuels based on the amount of carbon dioxide the fuel will emit when burned and allocate the collected proceeds to all U.S. households in equal per capita shares in the form of a dividend; and ---PAGE BREAK--- - 2 - WHEREAS, the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021 (H.R.2307) encourages market-driven innovation of clean energy technologies and market efficiencies which will reduce harmful pollution and leave a healthier, more stable, and more prosperous nation for future generations; and WHEREAS, a study by Columbia University estimated the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021 (H.R.2307) will lead to a decrease in America's carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent in five years relative to a 2005 baseline; and WHEREAS, border adjustments - carbon content-based levies on products imported from countries without comparable carbon pricing and refunds to our exporters of carbon fees paid - can maintain the competitiveness of U.S. businesses in global markets; and WHEREAS, a national revenue neutral carbon fee would make the United States a leader in mitigating climate change and in the clean energy technologies of the 21st century and would provide incentive to other countries to enact similar carbon fees, reducing global carbon dioxide emissions without the need for complex international agreements, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Whitefish, Montana, as follows: Section 1: The forgoing recitals are hereby adopted as findings of fact. Section 2: The City of Whitefish, Montana, urges the United States Congress to enact without delay the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 2021 (H.R.2307). Section 3: The City Manager or City Clerk, no later than 30 days after passage of this Resolution, shall transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, and to each U.S. Senator and Representative from the State of Montana in the Congress of the United States. PASSED AND ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WHITEFISH, MONTANA, THIS 17TH DAY OF MAY 2021. John M. Muhlfeld, Mayor ATTEST: Michelle Howke, City Clerk /s/John Muhlfeld /s/Michelle Howke ---PAGE BREAK--- - 3 - Andy Feury, City Council Member Whitefish, Montana Rebecca Norton, City Council Member Whitefish, Montana Ben Davis, City Council Member Whitefish, Montana Steve Qunell, City Council Member Whitefish, Montana Ryan Hennen, City Council Member Whitefish, Montana Frank Sweeney, City Council Member Whitefish, Montana /s/Andy Feury /s/Ben Davis /s/Ryan Hennen /s/Rebecca Norton /s/Steve Qunell /s/Frank Sweeney ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK---