California
Governor
Gavin Newsom (Democrat)
House Party
Democratic Supermajority
Senate Party
Democratic Supermajority
Key Offices & Links
52
15
West
Progress by Policy Area
- Enacted Enacted policies have been passed or established in a state by a governing body via legislation, executive orders, rules, regulations, and/or other program creation, and remain in effect.
- In-progress In progress policies have been established in a state, but final regulations, rules, or plans are pending final approval. This also includes legislation and executive orders that require regulations to be put into effect.
- Partially Enacted Partially enacted policies have been enacted in the state, but are missing one or more policy components. Dashboard policies cannot be considered partially enacted unless policy components are available.
- Not Enacted Not enacted policies have not been passed or established in the state or are no longer in effect.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Projections in California
Climate Policies in California
| Status | Policy | Policy Area | Policy Category | Year Enacted | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enacted |
Empty column
60% renewable electricity by 2030 | 90% by 2035 | 95% by 2040 | 100% by 2045 Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Energy Plans and Targets | 2022 | |
| Enacted |
Empty column
38 million metric tons (MMT) reduction by 2030 | 35 MMT by 2032 Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Energy Plans and Targets | 2022 | |
| Enacted |
Empty column
Achieving 100 Percent Clean Electricity in California Building the Electricity Grid of the Future: California's Clean Energy Transition Plan Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Energy Plans and Targets | 2023 | |
| Enacted |
Empty column
For projects over 50MW, the California Energy Commission (CEC) is allowed to oversee the permitting of clean and renewable energy facilities and facilities that produce clean energy technologies, if facilities opt into the CEC's jurisdiction. Environmental impact reports by the CEC must be completed within 270 days. Counties can serve as lead agencies (instead of the state) for permitting and environmental review of geothermal energy projects. In California, once a developer opts into the state's siting process, planners and local officials are relegated to the role of interested parties. State authorities will likely often give serious consideration to well-founded local concerns, but they aren't obligated to reject a project just because it doesn't meet local zoning requirements. Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Permitting and Grid Integration | 2024 | |
| Enacted |
Empty column
California received a B grade from Freeing the Grid. Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Permitting and Grid Integration | 2023 | |
| Enacted |
Empty column
Utilities must study the feasibility of grid enhancing technologies (GETs) and advanced conductors and then file a report with the California Independent System Operator (CAISO). Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Permitting and Grid Integration | 2024 | |
| Partially Enacted |
Empty column
The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies
Policy Components
9/11
|
Electricity
|
Permitting and Grid Integration | ||
| Partially Enacted |
Empty column
The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies
Policy Components
4/6
|
Electricity
|
Incentivizing Clean Energy Resources | ||
| Enacted |
Empty column
California has an active community choice aggregation program. Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Incentivizing Clean Energy Resources | 2002 | |
| Not Enacted |
Empty column
The State Policy Opportunity Tracker (SPOT) breaks clean energy policies down into “components”, which are binary questions to evaluate policy quality. Higher quality policies have more of their SPOT components fulfilled. Establishing Policies
Policy Components
0/5
|
Electricity
|
Incentivizing Clean Energy Resources | ||
| Enacted |
Empty column
1,385 megawatts (MW) of storage by 2020, of which 500 MW must be distributed storage, and 15 gigawatts (GW) of storage and demand response by 2032 Establishing Policies
|
Electricity
|
Incentivizing Clean Energy Resources | 2021 | |
| Not Enacted |
Empty column
Coal phaseouts establish a target year by which states must end coal-fired power generation. |
Electricity
|
Coal Retirement | ||
| Not Enacted |
Empty column
Coal securitization is a financing tool that allows utility companies to refinance debt they issued to build coal plants and close the facilities early without taking a financial hit or passing costs on to ratepayers. |
Electricity
|
Coal Retirement |