[perl4ever]

I don't see what the label has to do with it. Isn't it the total amount that matters? If the externalities of a gallon of gas are $X, and the total taxes are > $X, then the purchaser is paying for them. How do you know one or more of the taxes doesn't identify as a carbon tax?

I guess you could assume that the current taxes are precisely applied to externalities other than CO2, but given the large differences in taxation due to jurisdiction, I don't see how they could broadly match up. And requirements for them to do so surely aren't strict or universal.

[throwaway100773]

Because the actual harm done from emitting via gasoline usage is not dealt with under the current tax regime. I’d argue that any tax that exists does not encapsulate the cost of removing those emissions from the atmosphere. Considering it costs somewhere between 90 and 400/ ton (possibly more) to remove co2 from the atmosphere, I don’t see how the current tax regimes are quite enough but more importantly the economic harm that’s being done is not being addressed with those tax dollars.

In theory, you could tax gasoline to the level of true removal cost, but unless a market exists to actually remove the carbon it’s moot since the mechanism to clear the damage can’t exist without a functional market on carbon.

Thus, when you burn gasoline you are externalizing. As a result I cannot understand the desire to needlessly do this just so you can drive a superduty to your office job.