Trump Administration Rejects UN Global Carbon Tax, Threatens Retaliation

The Trump Administration announced opposition to a United Nations (UN) proposal to institute a tax on shipping industries to reduce carbon emissions. The announcement also included a threat to countries that support the proposal.

In a joint statement by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, the administration condemned the “Net-Zero Framework” approved by a committee of the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) in April.

The proposed amendment aims at setting a new standard of carbon emissions for ships as well as instituting a “global pricing mechanism” for all emissions. It will officially be voted on in October and, if passed, will go into effect in 2027.

The proposed framework will enforce the IMO’s new standards by applying a punitive fee on ships emitting above thresholds while financially rewarding those whose emissions fall within the standards. 

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The statement released by the Trump administration condemned this proposed amendment, arguing that it will “directly [drive] up costs for American consumers.”

“Whatever its stated goals, the proposed framework is effectively a global carbon tax on Americans levied by an unaccountable UN organization,” the statement released by the Trump administration reads. “Under this framework, ships will have to pay fees for failing to meet unattainable fuel standards and emissions targets. These fees will drive up energy and transportation and leisure cruise costs.”

“The Trump Administration unequivocally rejects this proposal before the IMO and will not tolerate any action that increases costs for our citizens, energy providers, shipping companies and their customers, or tourists,” the statement says.

The secretaries concluded by stating that the U.S. expects the other IMO members to agree to oppose the amendment, or the U.S. will “not hesitate to retaliate or explore remedies for our citizens should this endeavor fail.”

In a post rebuking the proposed international carbon tax, Secretary of Commerce Lutnick said, “America is setting the terms on how our products are going to market. We have every right to refuse their ‘net-zero framework,’ which would be a tax on every shipment of American goods.”

“International bureaucrats can take their [woke] climate nonsense elsewhere,” Lutnick concluded. 

This move to lessen the United Nations’ involvement in U.S. energy production and regulation comes as part of a larger push by the Trump administration to “unleash American energy” by purging the energy sector of foreign influence and beginning massive deregulation attempts.

Notably, on his first day in office, President Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris Climate Accords, which he said would save the country over a trillion dollars. The Paris Climate Accords set an increasing standard for member countries to reach and encouraged developed nations like the United States to pay for less developed nations to adopt more climate-sensitive measures.

Domestically, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is moving to undo Obama-era climate restrictions to deregulate the automotive and other manufacturing industries. If this deregulation goes into effect, it would remove an estimated $1 trillion of hidden taxes on American businesses and families, according to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin.