Climate Change Statutes

Kerri Boling
Research Assistant
National Agricultural Law Center

Global climate change is an area many state governments and the federal government are working towards combating. Currently forty-two states and the federal government have specific statutes to monitor and counter the effects of global climate change. These statutes range from greenhouse gas monitoring to the creation of regional carbon markets to carbon sequestration programs. This compilation is provided as a researcher-friendly resource guide for examining how states and federal government are combating global climate change. The statutory citations provided below include laws in effect between January 1970 and September 2010. Some statutes may have been repealed but are included for their historical significance. Statutes included in this index are aimed at developing policies to address climate change; statutes that require state agencies to examine climate change in relation to agency decisions are not included. An example of a statute requiring a state agency to include climate change in a decision is Cal. Health & Safety Code § 25253, which requires taking into account greenhouse gas emissions as part of life cycle assessment tools in evaluating chemicals in consumer products. To view a state’s statutory citations, simply click on the state’s image in the map below.

To review a compilation of citations for federal climate change laws in effect January 1970 and September 2010, see the companion publication, Federal Climate Change Statutory Citations.