Taxing carbon could reduce US consumption of fossil fuels and significantly cut the yawning U.S. budget deficit but would affect low-income people the hardest unless offsets are built into it, economists and tax experts said on Tuesday.

As Congress and the White House seek alternatives to the “fiscal cliff” of sharp tax hikes and spending cuts set to kick in on January first next year, experts on fiscal and environmental policy gathered at the American Enterprise Institute for a day-long discussion on a possible major new source of revenue that would also cut carbon emissions. Keep reading →