Gasoline at $4 per gal. might get the job done, but that could have a very disruptive effect on the economy. How to minimize the disruption? By sending every last penny raised through new energy taxes right back to the public.

His idea for giving the money back, however, is convoluted.

The simple way to give the money back is through a central account that distributes money to all citizens, an idea first proposed in the article Robotic Freedom. If Klien's tax were distributed through the central account proposed in Robotic Freedom, it would be a great way to get the program started.

Americans consume something like 150 billion gallons of gasoline per year. So a tax of $1 per gallon would yield about $150 billion for distribution. $2 per gallon would yield $300 billion for distribution. The tax could be phased in over a 2 year period to minimize impact. The great thing is that people would be getting the money right back through the central account, so the net effect on the economy would be zero.