Former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin says climate change is a “present danger” to the U.S. economy.
In a Washington Post op-ed, Rubin writes that the U.S. should incorporate climate change-related finances into yearly budget expenditures for the federal government.
{mosads}”While we can’t define future climate-change risks with precision, they should be included in economic policy, fiscal and business decisions because of their potential magnitude,” Rubin writes.
Rubin’s op-ed comes as the Senate Budget Committee is set to hold a hearing on the economic and budgetary costs of inaction of climate change. The hearing indicates the budget may be the next field of battle for climate change.
Rubin, who served under President Bill Clinton, explains that if nothing is done to mitigate climate change now then the costs will hit every sector, crippling the U.S. economy.
“Which means that, whatever your public policy views, whether you care about our national debt and deficits, our tax rates, or government investment in everything from national security to job creation, you should care about the costs of coping with climate-related damage,” Rubin writes.
Still, as Democrats in Congress continue to push climate change policies, the issue remains extremely decisive.
Republicans in Congress have taken aim at the President’s climate agenda.
Measures that would derail the administration’s carbon emissions standards for existing power plants have stalled important appropriations bills in the Senate because Democrats don’t want to see them pass.