California air regulators won’t enforce the state’s landmark corporate climate reporting law in its first year, according to an agency document obtained by POLITICO.
What happened: The California Air Resources Board wrote in a Dec. 5 memo that it plans to exercise “discretion” in enforcing CA SB253 (23R), a law Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed last year that requires large companies to start reporting their greenhouse gas emissions in 2026.
CARB said it wouldn’t punish companies in 2026 for “incomplete reporting” so long as “the companies make a good faith effort to retain all data relevant to emissions reporting for the entity’s prior fiscal year.”
Context: CARB is charged with implementing SB 253, a first-in-the-nation law by state Sen. Scott Wiener (D) requiring large companies operating in California to publicly disclose their full carbon footprint, including the greenhouse gas emissions generated by a company’s vast value chain known as Scope 3. The law allows CARB to fine companies up to $500,000 per year for noncompliance.
