Press Release: California Leaders in New York This Week Sounding the Alarm on the Need for Urgent Climate Action 

September 23, 2025

Media Contacts:

Nefretiri Cooley, California Environmental Protection Agency 
nefretiri.cooley@calepa.ca.gov

Diana Ibrahim, California Environmental Protection Agency 
diana.ibrahim@calepa.ca.gov 

SACRAMENTO—Top California officials have landed in New York for Climate Week NYC, an annual gathering of some of the world’s most prominent environmental, government, business, tech and academic leaders. California, which has long led the nation and the world on taking bold climate action, is sounding the alarm that climate change is CodeRED for humanity and that immediate and urgent action are needed now more than ever.   

“Our window to avoid the worst impacts of climate change is closing in on us faster than expected,” said Secretary for Environmental Protection Yana Garcia. “Despite the denial, deception and attempted undoings spinning hard and fast from the Trump Administration, California is not backpedaling. There’s too much at stake, and we understand very clearly that the choices we make today matter.” 

This year’s Climate Week NYC California delegation led by Governor Gavin Newsom includes Secretary for Environmental Protection Yana Garcia, Air Resources Board Chair Liane Randolph, Secretary of Transportation Toks Omishakin, Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild, Director of the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development Dee Dee Myers and Director of the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement Josh Fryday. 

California is staying the course on taking bold climate action. 

Last week, Governor Newsom and legislative leaders joined together to sign a major agreement on legislation to continue the state’s world-leading efforts to slash greenhouse gas emissions, building on California’s work to transition to a clean, green-job-creating economy; drive down electricity costs; and stabilize gasoline supply in the state. 

California remains committed to climate action despite ongoing federal threats. In June, in response to the Trump Administration’s attempts to illegally roll back California’s clean vehicle programs, Governor Newsom signed an executive order doubling down on the state’s efforts to transition away from fossil fuels. As a follow up, state agencies recently published a report charting a path to expand clean and zero-emission vehicle adoption, protect public health and maintain California’s momentum in the face of federal rollbacks. 

“Despite ongoing pollution promotion from Washington D.C., California remains undeterred in our efforts to realize cleaner air and a more sustainable future,” said California Air Resources Board Chair Liane Randolph. “We are proud to join world leaders in New York this week on the heels of a historic commitment from our Governor and legislative leaders that puts us on a steady course to carbon neutrality with the future of our Cap-and-Invest program secured through mid-century.” 

California leads the nation in transportation decarbonization. 

The transportation sector remains the largest source of California’s man-made greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for over 50 percent when including industrial emissions related to fuel production and delivery. The state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard is a key tool for transforming its fuel market; it supports the deployment of zero-emission vehicles and reduces emissions of climate and air pollution from vehicles. 

California is making significant progress. Smog-forming emissions have dropped nearly 70% since the 1970s because of the state’s vehicle rules. The state also leads the nation in zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) adoption with more than 2 million ZEVs purchased in California, and 34% of new ZEVs sold in the U.S. are sold in California. Further, California leads the nation with almost 200,000 public/semi-public electric vehicle (EV) chargers, about 50% more EV chargers than gasoline nozzles. 

According to the California Air Resources Board’s most recent annual greenhouse gas emissions inventory, the state’s greenhouse gas emissions dropped 2.4% in 2022 compared to 2021, or about 9.3 million metric tons. This is the equivalent of removing 2.2 million gasoline-powered vehicles from the road for a year. 

“Transportation is the backbone of any thriving economy — powering the movement of goods, creating jobs and driving infrastructure development,” said California Transportation Secretary Toks Omishakin. “Under Governor Gavin Newsom’s leadership, California is investing in transit and smart policies to support a cleaner, greener and healthier tomorrow. Our commitment to innovation and zero-emission transportation is helping us continue to tackle the climate crisis while building the 21st-century systems all of our communities deserve.” 

California is leading in the decarbonization of electricity too. 

In 2025, California announced a major milestone — 67% of the state’s retail electricity sales came from renewable and zero-carbon electricity generation — compared to just 61% the previous year and around 41% a decade ago. 

And this year, California is reaching 100% clean energy on the grid almost every day – sometimes for up to 11 hours at a time. Last year, the state ran on 100% clean energy for the equivalent of 51 days, and through August of this year, we’re already at 65 days. 

“As the Trump Administration retreats on common-sense clean energy solutions, California is leading the way forward,” said Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild. “Our energy efficiency standards have saved consumers billions of dollars and renewables are now the cheapest source of energy.” 

California’s economy continues to grow as the state adopts and executes critical climate actions. 

Despite claims from Trump’s EPA that climate progress threatens economic progress, California has shown that the two go hand-in-hand. The state’s economy is up, and pollution is down. As of April 2025, California is the fourth-largest economy in the world, overtaking Japan and placing behind only the U.S., China and Germany in global rankings. And between 2000 to 2022, greenhouse gas emissions in California fell by 20% while the state’s gross domestic product increased by 78% in that same time period. 

“California has proven that our economy has grown because we’re taking climate action, not despite it,” said Secretary Garcia. “The most expensive and dangerous option before us is doing nothing — the costs of climate change far exceed the costs of transitioning to a green, resilient economy.” 

California is a steady, trustworthy climate partner. 

California has a long legacy of forming global partnerships to strengthen climate commitments among national and regional governments. 

The state has advanced several recent partnerships: 

• In August 2025, in their continued partnership, California and Denmark signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Governor Newsom and Ambassador of Denmark to the U.S. Jesper Møller Sørensen supporting green economy resilience, technology and innovation. 

•  In May 2025, CARB and the Republic of Panama entered into a partnership on carbon pricing programs and climate investments. 

•   In March 2025, California signed a new partnership with the Mexican state of Sonora’s Governor Alfonso Durazo Montaño advancing cross-border action for cleaner air and clean energy. 

•   In February 2025, California and a consortium of Brazilian states partnered together to combat pollution and foster sustainable economic growth. 

“California’s nation-leading policies — and the innovative businesses and new technologies that are the hallmark of our state — are key to our climate cooperation with partners around the world,” said Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development Director Dee Dee Myers. “These discussions will strengthen our private sector and government ties, further our shared energy and security goals and prove that we can protect the climate while growing the economy.” 

“Success requires unprecedented collective effort and transformational change,” said Director of the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement Josh Fryday. 

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