Press Releases

SACRAMENTO — State Controller Betty T. Yee, a vocal proponent of creating a green energy economy, announced her strong support for two pieces of legislation that would implement “aggressive but achievable” climate goals set by Governor Jerry Brown earlier this year and build on efforts to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions.

Calling climate change “one of the most urgent issues of our time,” Controller Yee wrote a letter in support of Senate Bill 350 by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de León, which would substantially increase the procurement of electricity from renewable resources, double the efficiency of existing buildings, and reduce petroleum use by the transportation sector up to 50 percent by 2030.

Controller Yee also threw her support behind Senate Bill 32 by Senator Fran Pavley, author of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, which sought to reduce California greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020.  SB 32 would extend the 2006 act, requiring the California Air Resources Board to approve a greenhouse gas emissions limit 40 percent below the 1990 level by 2030, and 80 percent below the 1990 level by 2050.

“The targets established by these measures will lead the business and financial communities to make necessary investments for developing the alternative energy technological improvements, turning what is possible into what is achievable,” Yee said.

In a recent op-ed for The Sacramento Bee, Yee voiced her hope that 2015 will be a turning point for shedding our dependence on fossil fuels, expounding on her belief that major pension funds should engage with companies in which they invest to help accelerate a transition to renewable energy.

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