Last week, the California State Assembly passed SB 350, a bill that promises to boost renewable energy and make buildings twice as efficient as before. Officially named The Clean Energy and Reduction Act, the bill would require utilities to provide 50 percent of their electricity generation from renewable sources, such as solar, wind and geothermal power, by 2030.

The next step for the bill, which updates the Golden State's previous target of 33 percent renewable energy by 2020, is to be signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown. Brown is expected to sign the bill, without hesitation, by the end of the month, as it would accelerate movement towards the energy goals he has set forward for California. In January, Brown issued an executive order to reduce California's greenhouse gas emissions to 40 percent below where they stood in 1990. By 2050, the state hopes to knock its emissions output down to 80 percent of 1990 levels. 

"Today, California demonstrated once again that it is a world leader in tackling the climate crisis, protecting public health and expanding the booming clean energy economy," said Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune in a statement. "Ensuring that renewable energy makes up half of all electricity sold in the state by 2030 is both necessary and eminently achievable, and the significance of this move will echo around the world."

"Working together," Brune added, "these leaders have given another major boost of momentum to the future of our planet ahead of international climate negotiations this December in Paris."

The legislation was passed just 10 weeks before the 21st  United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, where representatives from California have been granted time on the main agenda to speak with global leaders seeking to reach a new internationally agreed-upon climate policy.

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