By Rachel Carton, Legislation Team Member
As California continues to face the devastating effects of climate change, from wildfires and drought to toxic air and rising sea levels, our state legislature plays a critical role in steering us toward a healthier, more equitable future. Our legislation team has carefully reviewed this year’s landscape, and we’ve identified key bills that either move us closer to our climate justice goals or threaten to set us back. Here’s where we stand and why.
Bills We Support
AB 1243 and SB 684 – Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act of 2025
For too long, fossil fuel companies have profited while communities across California pay the price through extreme heat, wildfires, floods, pollution and rising seas. AB 1243 and SB 684 aim to change that by creating a Climate Superfund that makes big polluters financially responsible for the damage they helped cause.
AB 1243 and SB 684 are identical companion bills that hold fossil fuel companies accountable for decades of climate deception and direct funds toward critical adaptation projects—so taxpayers aren’t left holding the bag.
We strongly support these twin bills because climate justice means making those most responsible pay their fair share.
AB 1167 and SB 24 – Electrical corporations and gas corporations: rate recovery: political activities and promotional advertising
Californians already pay some of the highest utility rates, so why should we also cover the cost of lobbying and PR for investor-owned utilities?
AB 1167 and SB24 would stop utilities from billing ratepayers for political ads and lobbying efforts by prohibiting these expenses from being recovered through rates, requiring transparency about who pays for public messaging, and mandating public filings to ensure accountability.
Both bills push for fairness, transparency, and accountability. We support these as it furthers our commitment to protecting ratepayers.
AB 1448 – Coastal resources: oil and gas development
This bill helps protect California’s coastlines from harmful development and climate impacts. By preserving our coastal ecosystems, AB 1448 helps prevent the reactivation of aging offshore oil infrastructure, and strengthens defenses against expanding off-shore drilling. It aligns with our mission to keep fossil fuels in the ground, even if that ground is offshore.
SB 542 – Oil spill prevention: administrator for oil spill response: duties
California’s coastline is a global treasure—and incredibly vulnerable to oil spills. SB 542 enhances oil spill prevention and response efforts. This bill aligns directly with our priority to keep fossil fuels in the ground and prevent environmental disasters before they happen.
SB 332 – Investor-Owned Utilities Accountability Act
SB 332 increases transparency and accountability for investor-owned utilities, it caps residential rate hikes,links executive pay to safety, mandates audits and upgrades of aging infrastructure in fire-prone areas and shifts more wildfire fund responsibility onto the utilities themselves. We support it as part of our broader effort to push for utility reform and a clean energy transition.
SB 10 – Otay Mesa East Toll Facility Act: Toll Revenues
While SB 10 may not seem like a climate bill, we support it because it directs toll revenues toward critical environmental projects that tackle pollution in the Tijuana River Valley. By addressing these cross-border environmental impacts, SB 10 helps reduce pollution that disproportionately affects frontline communities near the border.
SB 541 – Electricity: load shifting
SB 541 encourages load shifting: using electricity when clean energy is most abundant. This bill supports grid efficiency and renewable integration, and it helps California manage demand without relying on dirty power plants. We support SB 541 as a smart, technical step toward a cleaner grid.
AB 39 – General plans: Local Electrification Planning Act
AB 39 strengthens the requirement for climate action to be embedded into local governments’ general plans. This ensures land use decisions support transit, housing, and energy decarbonization goals. We support this bill as a planning-forward way to reduce emissions and prepare communities for climate impacts.
Bills We Oppose
AB 306 – Building regulations: state building standards
AB 306 threatens to roll back decarbonization requirements in new construction and could delay electrification timelines. This would undermine our goals to promote building decarbonization and reduce reliance on fossil fuels in homes and businesses. We strongly oppose AB 306 as a step in the wrong direction.
AB 942 – Net energy metering: eligible customer-generators: tariffs
AB 942 burdens homeowners who inherit an existing solar system by ending favorable rate agreements and imposing higher costs and eliminating a state climate credit for all solar customers. This threatens solar’s affordability and slows clean energy access. We oppose AB 942 because it undermines equitable, widespread adoption of renewable energy.
Final Thoughts
California has always led the way on climate, but we can’t afford to rest on our laurels. This legislative session presents real opportunities to make progress and real risks of backsliding. We’re calling on our supporters and fellow advocates to speak up for the bills that protect people and the planet and to reject those that serve fossil fuel interests and corporate utilities.
Together, we can keep fossil fuels in the ground, accelerate the renewable transition, and ensure no one is left behind.
— SD350 Legislation Team