Statement on the Suspense of SB 260 — The Climate Corporate Accountability Act

By Sunrise Bay Area

The California State Senate has asked us to wait another year before considering SB 260: a bill that takes the logical step of requiring the richest companies operating in California to disclose their climate pollution. But the climate crisis is not waiting. SB 260’s suspense comes the same day that the State confirmed California’s snowpack is at 2% of average levels, and more counties slip from extreme to exceptional drought. On the heels of a record-breaking wildfire season, a majority of Californians now live in trepidation about the climate crisis harming their own livelihoods.

With the chances of retaining a livable planet already vanishingly thin, one might find the suspense of one of the few remaining big climate bills inexplicable. But the reason is in fact depressingly obvious: California’s corporations — led by the oil and gas industry — spent millions to shield themselves from any accountability. They get what they paid for, but they’ll leave our generation with the bill.

We are losing confidence in the California legislature’s ability to deliver the transformative action that an emergency demands. Two-thirds of California voters say the State should move with more urgency on climate, yet even a Democratic supermajority seems unable to overcome corporate obstruction. If our leaders are not capable of delivering for their constituents in a moment of emergency, it’s time for them to step aside.