2021 Environmental Scorecard
What Happened?
D
California 2021
Score: 67%
California's 2021 Environmental Score
California’s 2021 Environmental Score is a measure of how the California Legislature and Governor did in 2021 on advancing climate, environmental, and democracy policy. To calculate the California score, we incorporate not only important bills that made it all the way through the legislative process but also important bills that did not get as far along in the legislative process as they should have, plus the $15 billion allocated towards climate investments in the state budget in 2021. Out of all of the opportunities to advance climate justice, how many of those opportunities did California legislators take?
California Environmental Voters assigned its first D grade (67%) to the state for its inaction on the climate crisis in 2021.
Bills highlighted in red were opposed by EnviroVoters
Pro-Environment Outcome= a pro-Environment bill was signed into law or an anti-environment bill failed
Anti-Environment Outcome= a pro-environment bill failed
| Bill | Issue Area | Pro-Environment Outcome | Anti-Environment Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| AB 37 (Authored by Assemblymember Marc Berman, Sabrina Cervantes, & Lorena Gonzalez) Permanent Vote-By-Mail Access for Every Californian | Democracy & Voting Rights | Yes | |
| AB 100 (Authored by Assemblymember Chris Holden) Protecting People from Exposure to Lead from Faucets | Toxics & Chemicals, Water Quality & Supply | Yes | |
| AB 794 (Authored by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo) Climate, Jobs & Equity Act to Ensure Truck Fleet Owners are in Compliance with State Labor Laws | Job Creation & Workforce Transition, Transportation | Yes | |
| AB 1087 (Authored by Assemblymember David Chiu) Environmental Justice Community Resilience Hubs Program | Climate Resilience & Adaptation, Environmental Justice | Yes | |
| AB 1238 (Authored by Assemblymembers Phil Ting & Laura Friedman) Freedom to Walk Act. This bill was scored in 2021 |
Racial & Social Justice, Transportation | Yes | |
| AB 1346 (Authored by Assemblymembers Marc Berman & Lorena Gonzalez) Zero Emission Lawn and Garden Equipment This bill was scored in 2021 |
Air Quality | Yes | |
| AB 1371 (Authored by Assemblymembers Laura Friedman, Lorena Gonzalez, and Phil Ting) Phasing out Unnecessary Plastic Packaging from Online Shopping This bill was scored in 2021 |
Recycling & Waste Reduction | Yes | |
| AB 1395 (Authored by Assemblymembers Al Muratsuchi & Cristina Garcia) The California Climate Crisis Act This bill was scored in 2021 |
Climate Change | Yes | |
| AB 1500 (Authored by Assemblymembers Eduardo Garcia & Kevin Mullin) & SB 45 (Portantino) Climate Bond Measures | Climate Resilience & Adaptation | Yes | |
| AB 1547 (Authored by Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes) Addressing indirect sources of air pollution from warehouses | Air Quality, Environmental Justice | Yes | |
| AB 284 (Authored by Assemblymember Robert Rivas) Nature-Based Climate Solutions on Natural and Working Lands This bill was scored in 2021 |
Natural Resources, Climate Change, Climate Resilience & Adaptation | Yes | |
| AB 416 (Authored by Assemblymember Kalra) Deforestation Free Procurement Act | Natural Resources | Yes | |
| AB 525 (Authored by Assemblymembers David Chiu, Jordan Cunningham, & Laura Friedman) Offshore Wind Energy Planning for a Clean Energy Future This bill was scored in 2021 |
Clean Energy, Job Creation & Workforce Transition | Yes | |
| AB 559 (Authored by Assemblymember Arambula) Increasing Community Representation on the San Joaquin River Conservancy Board | Natural Resources, Open Space & Parks | Yes | |
| AB 585 (Authored by Assemblymember Luz Rivas) Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program | Climate Resilience & Adaptation | Yes | |
| AB 754 (Authored by Assemblymember Dave Mathis) Unnecessary Delays to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act During a Severe Drought — EnviroVoters Opposed this Bill | Water Quality & Supply | Yes | |
| AB 896 (Authored by Assemblymember Steve Bennett) Holding Polluters Accountable for Cleanup Costs of Oil Wells | Oil & Gas | Yes | |
| Governor Action: California Announces Historic Agreement with Federal Partners to Advance Offshore Wind Development | Clean Energy, Job Creation & Workforce Transition | Yes | |
| Governor Action: California Moves to Prevent New Oil Drilling near Communities & Expand Health Protections | Oil & Gas, Environmental Justice | Yes | |
| Governor Action: Newsom Takes Action to Phase Out Oil Extraction in California | Oil & Gas | Yes | |
| Budget Action: $15 Billion State Budget Package to Tackle the Climate Crisis and Protect Vulnerable Communities passed by the Legislature and Signed by the Governor | Climate Resilience & Adaptation | Yes | |
| SB 260 (Authored by Senator Scott Wiener & Senator Henry Stern) Climate Corporate Accountability Act This bill was scored in 2021 |
Corporate Accountability, Climate Change | Yes | |
| SB 286 (Authored by Senator Dave Min) Increasing Voter Access to County Elections | Democracy & Voting Rights | Yes | |
| SB 30, SB 31, 32 (Authored by Senator Dave Cortese) Building Decarbonization Bill Package | Clean Energy | Yes | |
| SB 62 (Authored by Senator Maria Elena Durazo) Garment Worker Protection Act to Combat Wage Theft | Racial & Social Justice, Job Creation & Workforce Transition | Yes | |
| SB 342 (Authored by Senator Lena Gonzalez & Sydney Kamlager) Environmental Justice Representation on the South Coast AQMD Board This bill was scored in 2021 |
Air Quality, Environmental Justice | Yes | |
| SB 343 (Authored by Senator Ben Allen) Prohibiting Greenwashing of Non-Recyclable Waste This bill was scored in 2021 |
Recycling & Waste Reduction | Yes | |
| SB 372 (Authored by Senator Connie Leyva) Financial assistance for small fleets to transition from diesel trucks to zero emission trucks | Transportation, Air Quality | Yes | |
| SB 449 (Authored by Senators Henry Stern & Scott Wiener) Requiring Corporations and Financial Institutions to Disclose Climate Related Financial Risk | Corporate Accountability, Climate Change | Yes | |
| SB 467 (Authored by Senator Scott Wiener & Monique Limón) Banning Fracking & Oil Drilling in Neighborhoods This bill was scored in 2021 |
Oil & Gas, Environmental Justice | Yes | |
| SB 47 (Authored by Senator Monique Limón) Increasing Spending Limits to Clean Up More Idle Oil Wells This bill was scored in 2021 |
Oil & Gas | Yes | |
| SB 596 (Authored by Senator Josh Becker) Requiring the State Air Resources Board to Develop a Strategy to Achieve Net-Zero Greenhouse Gas Emissions for the Cement Industry | Air Quality | Yes |
