Studies have shown that a steadily-rising price, starting at $15/ton and rising by $10/ton per year, would cut fossil fuel pollution by 30% in the first 5 years alone. This will put America on a path to hit the targets set by the Paris accords and to reach net zero by 2050.

A carbon tax becomes affordable for ordinary Americans when the money collected from fossil fuel companies is given as a dividend, or “cash back” payment, to every American. This protects low-and-middle-income Americans who otherwise might not be able to afford the transition.

Today, nearly ¾ of America’s buildings use fossil fuels to heat space or water, or cook food, creating 10% of our carbon pollution each year. Half of new homes today are built with fossil fuel heating or appliances, locking in that carbon pollution for decades.  

Building electrification means switching from using fossil fuels in our home appliances to using clean energy. For existing homes, we need to switch to electric appliances that can significantly reduce or eliminate carbon pollution. For new homes, we need to ensure construction is electric-ready.

Every big energy project needs permits. More than 95% of new energy projects currently awaiting permits are for clean energy like solar, wind, and battery storage.

Permits are important to protect communities, workers, and natural environments, but they also add time and expense. We support reforms to our permitting process so America can build and connect new energy projects quickly and safely.

America’s natural resources like forests, grasslands, and oceans are natural climate solutions that pull carbon out of the air, reducing the impacts of climate change. We support policies that allow natural resources in urban and rural areas to reduce the effects of climate change.

By protecting, expanding, and managing our forests in a way that is climate-smart, they can reduce emissions up to 22% by 2030.

We sponsored AB 2329, which created a funding mechanism to promote electricity affordability and incentivize electrification.

This bill didn't pass, but it helped set the stage for our current focus on electric rate reform with funding from the Cap-and-Trade Program. 

Passed by voters, Proposition 4 authorizes a $10 billion bond to conserve natural resources and respond to the causes and effects of climate change.

It includes safeguarding our water supply, increasing forest health to reduce wildfires, preventing sea level rise, and building clean energy infrastructure.

As an alternative to building new transmission lines, reconductoring and grid enhancing technologies provide a faster, cheaper way to increase transmission capacity.

SB 1006 requires utilities to study the feasibility of using grid-enhancing technologies and reconductoring to connect renewable energy resources, and to incorporate this research into annual transmission planning. This was passed and signed into law.

SB 308 would create a plan for developing the required Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) capacity to achieve net zero by 2045.

Though this bill didn't pass, our members participated in a lobby day that helped increase awareness of the need for CDR, paving the way for future legislation.