according to Mildenberger et al. (2022) – health insurance is mandatory for all residents in Switzerland and the same process was already being used to distribute funds from the volatile organic compounds tax. However, the authors note that the approach may contribute to low levels of awareness of the dividend amongst the public. Their 2019 survey of 1,050 residents found that just 11.8% of respondents were aware that most funds are redistributed to residents and businesses, while only 14.7% of respondents were aware that the dividend was paid to them via a discount on their annual health insurance bill. Regular and more direct payment methods (e.g. monthly cash payments) would likely increase the salience of the dividend for residents. The Swiss carbon tax and dividend scheme commenced in 2008 when voluntary measures failed to meet intermediate targets linked to Switzerland's Kyoto Protocol commitments, as legislated under its Federal Act on the Reduction of Emissions (“ Act”). The carbon tax applies only to fossil fuels used to generate heat, light or electricity in the building sector and parts of the industry sector. Sectors excluded from the scheme (transport, agriculture, waste and around 60% of the industry sector) are instead regulated under either the Swiss Emissions Trading Scheme or the non EHS program. Overall, the carbon tax accounts for around one third of greenhouse gas emissions in Switzerland. The carbon tax was introduced at CHF 12 per ton of CO2 equivalent (CO2-e) and has risen by CHF 12 periodically until reaching its current rate of CHF 96 in 2018. The impacts on emissions from the scheme are estimated to be a reduction of around 6.9 million tons of CO2-e between 2008 and 2015. An evaluation by the Federal Office of the Environment found the scheme to be highly efficient for reducing emissions. On 13 June 2021, despite having the support of almost all major political parties, a public referendum vote rejected (51.6% against) new laws that would expand the carbon tax to cover the transport sector and increase the tax rate from CHF 120 to CHF 210 per ton by 2030. Mildenberger et al. (2022) note that the dividend aspect of the scheme did not play a prominent role in public debate in the lead up to the referendum, which instead focussed heavily on the costs of the carbon tax. The authors suggest that this was a missed opportunity to raise awareness