The California Policy Context

On September 27, 2006, California’s Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law the landmark Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32), the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. This piece of legislation was not only the first of its kind in the nation, but it was based on an assumption about global warming that the governor articulated it in the September 27, 2006, Sacramento Bee this way: “The science is clear. The global warming debate is over. We have a responsibility to act now.” AB 32 codifies the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020, a reduction of 25 percent from current levels. As one way to help the state reach this goal, mandatory emissions limits will be imposed on the large industrial emitters, such as oil, electric, natural gas facilities.

But this wasn’t the first time California forged its own path in attempting to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to curb global warming. In 2002, Governor Gray Davis signed into law Assembly Bill 1493, which mandated a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from new cars and light trucks beginning with the 2009 model year. As this deadline fast approaches, the state faces a dual set of challenges. First, automakers have filed several lawsuits against the state of California to challenge emissions regulations. Second, the state is waiting for a much delayed decision by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as to whether California should be granted a “waiver of federal preemption” to set its own vehicle emissions standards as a way to regulate air pollution.

A major hurdle was cleared in April 2007 when the Supreme Court ruled that the federal Environmental Protection Agency had the authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from autos and would have to provide a scientific basis for why it was not doing so. Still, the EPA has yet to make a decision about granting a waiver to California. The outcome of this decision does not only affect California’s regulatory ability; since the passage of AB 1493, eleven other states have adopted California’s regulations. If California is granted a waiver, these states will be able to implement their regulations as well.