Insider Blog: California’s climate legislation in 2023

2023 was a big year for climate legislation in the state of California! Governor Gavin Newsom signed two landmark climate bills into law back in October.

The first, titled California’s Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (or SB 253) will require companies with an annual revenue of at least $1,000,000,000 (one billion dollars) to disclose emissions related to their business/products. This law will go into effect in 2026 and will affect approximately 5,400 businesses (according to Politico).

The second bill is titled Greenhouse Gases: Climate Related Financial Risk (or SB 261) and will require companies with annual revenue of at least $500,000,000 (500 million dollars) to file a report with the state disclosing any climate-related risks the company faces as well as what action(s) are being taken to mitigate said risks.