#ClimateCourageBudget Priorities to Save California for our Kids’ Future

California needs bold leadership and a massive climate investment to stop the climate crisis from becoming a bigger threat to our health, lives, and livelihoods. The #ClimateCourageBudget campaign urges California’s leaders to think bigger than Governor Gavin Newsom’s $47.1 billion climate proposal, which is unprecedented but only 3% of state spending over five years. We need at least $75 billion committed over the next five years, or 5% of our state budget, to invest in large-scale clean transportation and energy, water, and other vital infrastructure projects.

  • $28.4 BILLION FOR TRANSPORTATION – Fossil-fuel based transportation is our largest source of climate emissions. This investment would expand clean rail, buses, and trucks to transport people and goods in a cleaner economy. We must also ensure all Californians, especially those most impacted by vehicle pollution, benefit from zero emission car ownership and have more transit and active transportation alternatives available.
  • $12.6 BILLION FOR CLEAN ENERGY – We can’t win the climate fight without accelerating affordable clean power generation, storage, and access. Large energy grid upgrades are needed to connect Californians with clean energy provided by more solar and wind power generation. We must power 1 million homes and public buildings on solar power paired with energy storage and build community resilience centers to aid emergency response to climate disasters growing in frequency and intensity.
  • $3 BILLION FOR GREENING BUILDINGS – Building decarbonization, pollution-reducing retrofits for low-income Californians, and infill development and affordable housing are important tools to fight climate change and build social equity. Funds will also help power homes of low-income Californians on electricity instead of natural gas.
  • $7.2 BILLION FOR WATER – Recurring drought fueled by climate change threatens our access to water. Water supplies must be secured through better management of aquifers, water recycling, conservation, and improvements in water systems at risk of drought. We must also provide water bill assistance and water efficiency aid for low-income families.
  • $2.4 BILLION FOR WILDFIRES – Record wildfires are incinerating communities, destroying our forests, and choking us with toxic smoke. We must reduce the risk of catastrophic fires and protect our forests. We must also create and support smoke warning systems, stronger enforcement of job safety protections for Californians working outside during smoke days, fire training centers, and community readiness.
  • $7.7 BILLION FOR NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS – Urban greening, harnessing our natural landscapes and farms, and forest health are key climate solutions to capture carbon. Land and ecosystem preservation is also an essential component to ensure the success of these efforts and to protect biodiversity.
  • $625 MILLION FOR RACIAL JUSTICE AND DEMOCRACY – More democracy is the solution to inequality and climate change. These funds will aid voter outreach and the establishment of an Office of Racial Equity and a new community-based program to house families displaced by climate change.
  • $18.1 BILLION FOR A JUST TRANSITION FROM FOSSIL FUELS – Many Californians provide for their families through jobs in the oil industry and they must prosper in a green economy. We must plug orphan oil wells, retrain workers, and ensure the livelihoods for impacted workers and the availability of vital services in communities where local tax revenues will fall.

For further information, see our budget proposal to Governor Newsom and the State Legislature.