Bill 253, the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act, passed the California Senate on Tuesday and the California Assembly on Monday and is now on its way to Governor Gavin Newsom, who must decide whether to sign the bill into law.
The bill would require all businesses with more than $1 billion in revenue to publicly disclose their Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions over a series of years.
Scope 1 emissions are greenhouse gases released from sources that are owned by an organization, while Scope 2 are the indirect emissions that a company incurs from such processes as buying electricity, heating and cooling buildings, and Scope 3 emissions come from a company’s supply chain or value chain, and are difficult to track, CNBC reported.
The bill would require California to pass regulations by 2025 to require large businesses to publicly disclose their Scope 1 and 2 emissions to a reporting organization starting in 2026, and Scope 3 data starting in 2027.
Some Big Tech companies, such as Apple and Google, support the bill, while the California Chamber of Commerce wants the bill vetoed, stating that requiring emissions accounting will increase business operation costs for businesses and consumers.
Newsom has until October 14 to act on the legislation, which, if adopted, would be the first of its kind in the nation to require carbon emissions reporting, a spokesperson for the Governor’s office told CNBC.
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