SACRAMENTO, CA—Today, California State Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo-Park) joined Governor Gavin Newsom and lawmakers on a delegation the New York to attend “Climate Week NYC” and advocate for necessary climate polices that reduce the United States’ dependency on fossil fuels. Senator Becker will participate in a series of panels to promote clean energy climate policies and discuss California’s leadership in decarbonizing our economy.
This delegation is focused on implementing sensible policies that decarbonize the state’s economy and invest in clean energy jobs. Senator Becker will join Governor Newsom and other lawmakers to stress the importance of decarbonizing the economy and transitioning California to a clean, green economy. During the conference Senator Becker will highlight several policies that California is considering to combat climate change.
“We are facing an unprecedented climate crisis, with extreme weather causing irreparable harm and even death. The time to act is now,” said Senator Becker. “California continues to lead the world on implementing policies that will ensure a secure, efficient and green electric grid while addressing the contributing factors of catastrophic climate change on our environment and vulnerable communities. This international forum is a perfect venue for sharing ideas and best practices for combatting climate change.”
As Chair of the Senate Budget Subcommittee No. 2 on Resources, Environmental Protection and Energy, Senator Becker has been a leader on implementing policies that transition California into a clean economy. One key policy that California is considering is Senator Becker’s SB 48, which addresses one of the largest contributors of CO2 emissions. Large buildings are a massive contributor of emissions, causing more than 20 million tons of CO2 per year. We already have strong regulations on new buildings, but now we need the courage to tackle older, large buildings. This bill strikes the right balance to get buildings where they need to be in order to reduce emissions and create clean, safe and comfortable places to work and live. While improving the carbon footprint of these large buildings, this bill is also projected to generate over $35 billion of economic activity in cumulative investment by 2040. Another key policy is Senator Becker’s SB 410, which holds utilities like PG&E accountable for speeding up their improvements on upgrading interconnections so that everyday people can connect their energy efficient household products into their homes. This bill is supported by a broad and diverse coalition, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, The League of California Cities, the California Chamber of Commerce, the Bay Area Council, Sierra Club, Environment California, and Silicon Valley Clean Energy. It now heads to the Governor’s office for a signature.
Climate Week NYC is the largest annual climate event of its kind, bringing together some 400 events and activities across the City of New York – in person, hybrid and online. Each year, business leaders, political change makers, local decision takers and civil society representatives of all ages and backgrounds, from all over the world, gather to drive the transition, speed up progress, and champion change that is already happening.
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Senator Becker represents the 13th Senate District covering portions of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties and includes the cities of Atherton, Belmont, Brisbane, Burlingame, East Palo Alto, Foster City, Half Moon Bay, Hillsborough, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Menlo Park, Millbrae, Mountain View, Pacifica, Palo Alto, Redwood City, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Mateo, South San Francisco, and Woodside.