California’s amended LCFS Regulation took effect on July 1, 2025 as the fuel price impact debate and judicial challenges continue.
By Joshua T. Bledsoe, Tal Carmeli, and Samantha Yeager
On June 27, 2025, the California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved the amended Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) Regulation, submitted by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to the OAL on May 16, 2025. Following OAL’s approval, CARB announced that the amendments would enter into force on
Supremacy Clause and Dormant Commerce Clause claims against SB 253 and SB 261 were dismissed, while claims under the First Amendment proceed to discovery.
By Joshua Bledsoe, Nikki Buffa, Betty M. Huber, and Matthew Green
On February 3, 2025, in Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America et al. v. California Air Resources Board et al.,1 the US District Court for the Central District of California granted the state’s motion to dismiss the
CARB will not penalize reporting entities for incomplete Scope 1 and 2 emissions disclosures under SB 253, irritating lawmakers and raising the specter of oversight hearings.
By Joshua Bledsoe, Nikki Buffa, Betty M. Huber, and Matthew Green
On December 5, 2024, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) issued an Enforcement Notice for Senate Bill 253, the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (SB 253),1 stating that CARB will not penalize in-scope entities for incomplete compliance
In-scope entities should keep preparing for compliance with Senate Bills 253 and 261 as the lawsuit proceeds past an initial summary judgment motion.
By Joshua Bledsoe, Betty Huber, Nicole Valco, and Matthew Green
On November 5, 2024, in Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America et al. v. California Air Resources Board et al.,1 the US District Court for the Central District of California denied plaintiffs’ summary judgment motion which sought to declare
Assembly Bill 98 imposes stringent design requirements applicable to new and expanded warehouse development as soon as January 1, 2026.
By Marc Campopiano, Joshua Bledsoe, Brian McCall, and John Detrich
On September 29, 2024, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 98 (AB 98) into law, marking a significant shift in the regulatory landscape for the logistics industry in California. AB 98 continues the trend of shifting regulation of logistics uses away from local jurisdictions to more regional
A federal court heard motions for summary judgment in challenge to first-in-nation rule requiring warehouses to adopt clean technologies.
By Joshua Bledsoe, Nick Cox, and Jennifer Garlock
On April 17, 2023, a US federal judge heard arguments in a lawsuit challenging the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD or the District) adoption of Rule 2305 and will now decide whether to grant summary judgment to the plaintiffs and vacate the rule.
Rule 2305 is the Warehouse Indirect Source Rule (ISR) — Warehouse Actions and Investments to Reduce Emissions (WAIRE) Program. As described in this June 2021 blog post, the WAIRE Program applies to certain warehouses in the South Coast Air Basin and imposes a compliance obligation based on the number of truck visits to that warehouse per year. Warehouse operators can meet that obligation by taking any number of emissions-reducing actions, either from the “WAIRE Menu” or through a custom plan approved by the District.
The plan accelerates already ambitious climate goals for California and charts a course to carbon neutrality by 2045.
By Joshua Bledsoe, Jen Garlock, and Brian McCall
On December 15, 2022, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted its Final 2022 Scoping Plan for Achieving Carbon Neutrality (Final Scoping Plan). Assembly Bill (AB) 32 requires CARB to develop and update every five years a scoping plan that describes the approach California will take to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) to combat climate change. AB 32 originally set a target of reducing emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. After California met this goal, Senate Bill (SB) 32 strengthened the state’s GHG reduction target to at least 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. California committed to even greater targets this year with adoption of AB 1279, which directs the state to become carbon neutral no later than 2045.
California continues to push toward its statewide carbon-neutrality goals.
By Arthur F. Foerster and Joshua Bledsoe
On August 25, 2022, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) unanimously approved regulations that require all new 2035 and later passenger vehicles to be zero-emission vehicles. The agency’s “Advanced Clean Cars II” regulations require manufacturers to deliver an increasing percentage of zero-emission vehicles each year, starting with 35% of new vehicle sales for cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs in 2026, and ramping up each year to reach 100% new vehicle sales by 2035.[1]
Governor Newsom introduces five ambitious proposals that could alter California’s climate policy for years to come.
By JP Brisson, Nikki Buffa, Marc Campopiano, Jennifer Roy, Michael Dreibelbis, Aron Potash, and Alicia Robinson
On August 12, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom submitted five climate proposals (the Climate Proposals) to the California legislature in the waning days of California’s legislative cycle. In his statement following the transmittal, Newsom explained that “[w]e’re taking all of these major actions now in the most aggressive push on climate this state has ever seen because later is too late.”[1]
CARB addresses California’s increasingly severe climate impacts.
By Joshua T. Bledsoe and Kevin Homrighausen
On May 10, 2022, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released its Draft 2022 Scoping Plan Update (Draft Scoping Plan) for public review and comment. Assembly Bill 32, the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, requires CARB to develop and update every five years a scoping plan that describes the approach California will take to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to achieve the goal of reducing emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. Senate Bill 32 subsequently strengthened the state’s GHG emissions reductions target to at least 40% below 1990 levels by 2030.
Latham & Watkins’ first post in this series discusses CARB’s Proposed Scenario to achieve the state’s GHG targets, which adopts a carbon neutrality target for 2045. The second post discusses how the Cap-and-Trade Program features in the Draft Scoping Plan. The third post discussed how California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) Program factors into the state’s GHG reduction goals and how the LCFS Program may be amended in the near future. This fourth and final post describes how the Draft Scoping Plan responds to some of California’s most significant climate impacts, like wildfires, drought, and extreme heat.