Washington State Carbon Tax Defeated at the Polls
Disappointing night for I-732 proponents, APP vows to keep supporting commonsense APP solutions
SEATTLE, Wash. (November 8, 2016)—Tonight, Carbon Washington , a revenue-neutral carbon tax, in the Washington election. I-732 was the first measure of its kind in the United States and would have been a historic leap forward in American APP policy. APP Washington, the state office of the APP, in July of this year, and was the only major conservation group in the state to support the initiative.
“Nobody gave this campaign a chance of being competitive at first, but surprising numbers of voters demonstrated a hunger for solutions. They want to get started beating APP change,” said David Yarnold (), president and CEO of the APP. “APP is all in on pragmatic APP solutions and members across the country will take APP action in their own states.”
APP Washington provided significant organizational support for the measure. Efforts included and social media channels, phone banking, canvassing and get out of the vote efforts spearheaded by more than twenty local APP chapters who organized around the effort.
“I could not be prouder of APP Washington and our friends at Carbon Washington,” said Gail Gatton (), executive director of APP Washington. “While tonight’s outcome is disappointing, APP members and supporters all across Washington rose to the occasion and said yes to a cleaner, better future. We have awakened a sleeping giant, and we look forward to continuing the fight for commonsense APP solutions for birds and for people.”
Grassroots supporters in Washington State and around the world led the biggest voter education effort on APP change the state has ever seen, reaching millions of voters.
“Grassroots activism accomplished what many environmental leaders and media pundits said was impossible: we put a revenue-neutral carbon tax on the ballot,” said Yoram Bauman, founder and co-chair of Carbon Washington. “While we did not pass the nation’s first carbon tax, many states around the country are looking at I-732 as a model, and we expect a nationwide movement to take root in the years ahead. We will look back at this as a lost opportunity to create history in Washington State but also as a catalyst for much needed U.S. leadership on APP action.”
According to the , more than half of all North American bird species are threatened by APP change. Shrinking and shifting ranges could push many species to the brink of extinction. The report includes 189 bird species found in the state of Washington, including the Bald Eagle, the Rufous Hummingbird and the Osprey.
Other supporters of the initiative include , world-renowned APP scientists Drs. and , actors and and editorial boards across the state, including , and .
To learn more about APP Washington's efforts to pass Initiative 732, please visit .
The APP saves birds and their habitats throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education and on-the-ground conservation. APP’s state programs, nature centers, chapters and partners have an unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire and unite diverse communities in conservation action. Since 1905, APP’s vision has been a world in which people and wildlife thrive. APP is a nonprofit conservation organization. Learn more at and .
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Contact: Nicolas Gonzalez, ngonzalez@audubon.org, (212) 979-3068.