The nonprofit sustainability group Ceres welcomed today’s passage of California’s signature climate bill, stating it is a “huge step forward in the global fight against climate change.”
The climate law, Senate Bill 32, extends the basic framework of the state’s current climate law, which runs until 2020, and sets new targets for greenhouse gas reductions by 2030 – specifically reducing GHG emissions 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030. The current climate law, AB32, required the state to reach 1990 levels by 2020.
“Today’s action reinforces California’s leadership and commitment to a low-carbon economy and sends a powerful signal to the rest of the country and the world that they should do the same,” said Ana Zacapa, Ceres California Program Director. “The state will continue to reap widespread economic benefits in terms of new innovation and new jobs.”
On Aug. 3, Ceres brought nearly a dozen companies and investors to Sacramento to meet with key lawmakers – including Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and the Governor Brown’s staff – to voice their support for the climate bill. Executives from Levi Strauss & Co., Dignity Heath, Sierra Nevada, Trillium Asset Management and nearly a half-dozen other firms participated in 18 in-person meetings.
“Passage of Senate Bill 32 reaffirms what many leading investors and companies asked lawmakers to do: stay the course in driving a low-carbon future,” Zacapa added.
