AN ACT RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- 2021 ACT ON CLIMATE

SB 89 adds ethical energy standards to the state's 2021 Act on Climate. It requires the climate council to annually study whether state climate programs shift environmental or labor impacts onto developing countries, including tracking mining conditions for materials like lithium and cobalt. The bill also mandates that solar permit applicants set aside funds for end-of-life panel recycling, requires wind turbine blades to be recycled or disposed of within the state (with limited exceptions), and establishes renewable energy credit programs that exclude electricity from facilities using child labor or certain toxic materials in manufacturing. These provisions directly affect state agencies, energy developers, and utility companies implementing climate policies.