Rising insecurity in the oil producing regions of the world along with rising carbon levels in the atmosphere are pushing Congress to update our nation’s energy policies. But far from providing a bold solution to our converging environmental, energy and security dilemmas, the bill that has come out of the Senate to gradually increase fuel efficiency standards relies on timid half-measures. Congress should instead consider a more effective and long-overdue step towards energy independence and environmental protection -- implementing a broad-based energy tax.

Clearly, U.S. energy policies need reforming. Oil-producing nations hold too much sway over our pocketbooks and our way of life. Given the rising instability and anti-U.S. sentiment in many oil producers around the world, an energy policy that will afford us more independence is a crucial matter of both national and economic security. As many of us recall, oil embargos and energy price spikes can wreak economic havoc, pushing inflation up and hurting consumers, particularly the poor. And global warming, triggered by accumulating carbon emissions in the atmosphere -- of which the U.S. is the chief contributor -- is advancing faster than previously believed, heightening the need to embrace a corrective, low-carbon energy production strategy.

Simply put, the Senate bill is not aggressive enough to do the job. Its centerpiece is a gradual hike in our national fuel efficiency standards -- so gradual that the U.S. wouldn’t reach European levels of energy efficiency until 2020. Not only is the pace too slow given the challenges we face, it also leaves the window open for years of business lobbying to loosen the standards, making it discouragingly likely that existing loopholes would be abused and the policy weakened further. And fuel efficiency standards neglect the many other sources of CO2 emissions that pollute the environment.

Implementing a broad-based energy tax is the preferable approach. By making traditional energy sources more expensive, price sensitive consumers -- that is, most of us -- would change our driving habits, power usage and appliance purchases in response to the higher costs. Those who did not would at least have to pay a fair price for the pollution and energy dependencies they created. At the same time, the new taxes would spur technological innovation by inducing industries to harness alternative and renewable energy sources, and design more energy-efficient products. The new tax shouldn’t be a pure "carbon tax," which would saddle coal-based energy production with steep price increases while allowing us to maintain our national addiction to oil with little abatement. Rather, a comprehensive energy tax ought to discourage in a relatively uniform way the use of all energy sources that contribute to global warming.

Instead of costing money, the way subsidies to energy-related industries do, an energy tax would allow the government to raise substantial revenues -- easily $50-$100 billion a year -- a desirable bonus during a period such as this, when the government is strapped for cash. If, given the current anti-tax sentiment in Washington, Congress is unwilling to implement a pure tax increase, it could always use the new revenues to cut other taxes such as corporate taxes, or income taxes for the least well-off who would be hit hardest by new energy taxes. Either approach would result in a tax system that is both more efficient and fairer.

Politicians have thus far been hesitant to use tax policy as a lever to break our unhealthy dependency on energy, due in large part to the scars left over from the vicious fight over BTU taxes during the Clinton Administration. But, the world has changed since then. Growing awareness about the dangers presented by instability in the Middle East and environmental degradation leave the public more receptive to bolder options. The strong business lobbies that have been so effective in opposing energy policy changes in the past look increasingly like special-interest-dominated spoilers.

The bottom line is that a broad-based energy tax would be a rare policy trifecta, curbing U.S. energy consumption, reducing pollution and providing a reliable new source of revenue. If Congress really wants to go green, it will have to be willing to be bold.