California SB 253 and SB 261: What Your Organisation Needs to Know

Why California leads on corporate climate disclosure

California has long paired ambitious state climate targets with detailed implementation through agencies such as the Air Resources Board (CARB). SB 253 and SB 261 extend that tradition by requiring large businesses that meet certain thresholds to report emissions and, under SB 261, climate-related financial risk in line with recognised frameworks. Other jurisdictions are watching closely, so understanding these rules helps you anticipate how global and national programmes may evolve.

SB 253: Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act

Who reports and what they report

SB 253 applies to partnerships, corporations, limited liability companies, and other business entities with total annual revenues greater than one billion U.S. dollars and that do business in California. Covered reporters must disclose Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol standards and guidance, including guidance on Scope 3 accounting and reporting.

CARB adopts regulations to implement the law. Regulations were approved in February 2026, with a first reporting milestone in August 2026 for many covered entities. Assurance requirements phase in over time for different scopes, so planning for data quality and third-party review should start well before the first filing date.

SB 261: Climate-related financial risk

TCFD-aligned reporting and current legal status

SB 261 targets covered entities with annual revenues over five hundred million U.S. dollars that do business in California. They must prepare a biennial report on climate-related financial risk, prepared in accordance with the recommended disclosures published by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) or an equivalent reporting requirement.

Implementation has faced litigation. As of November 2025, a Ninth Circuit injunction paused enforcement of SB 261 while the case proceeds. Organisations should still monitor the docket and maintain internal readiness: if the pause lifts, timelines could compress quickly for first reports and board-level governance narratives.

Key compliance dates and phase-in

A practical schedule to anchor your programme

• February 2026: CARB regulations under SB 253 approved, locking in reporting formats, assurance steps, and administrative detail.
• August 2026: First major SB 253 reporting deadline for many reporters (confirm your cohort against the final regulatory text and CARB guidance).
• Assurance: Limited and reasonable assurance for Scope 1 and 2, and eventually Scope 3, roll out on staggered dates defined in regulation. Build controls and documentation now so assurance is verification, not rescue work.
• SB 261: Treat biennial reporting as contingent on litigation outcomes; maintain TCFD-style governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics content so you can publish on short notice if required.

What “doing business in California” means

Organisation in the state or material California sales

Criteria under California law generally include being organised or commercially domiciled in California, or having California sales of seven hundred thirty-five thousand U.S. dollars or more in a year. Revenue-based parent tests can pull in U.S. and global groups with a single qualifying affiliate, so legal and tax counsel should confirm your specific facts against the statute and CARB guidance.

Scope 3 and your value chain

Why venues, events, and suppliers all feel the pressure

Scope 3 captures indirect emissions from purchased goods and services, travel, waste, investments, and use of sold products, among other categories. For sports leagues, arenas, festivals, and municipal venues, a large share of total footprint often sits in Scope 3: fan travel, concessions, temporary power, merchandise, and contractor fleets. When upstream partners must disclose Scope 3, they will ask you for activity data and emission factors you may not have centralised today. Getting ahead on supplier engagement and consistent boundaries protects both your partners and your brand.

How municipalities fit in

State programmes and Paris Agreement alignment

Cities and counties often run parallel state and regional climate programmes, inventory community-wide emissions, and report progress against commitments under the Paris Agreement and related frameworks. Even when a municipality is not directly covered as a “business entity” under SB 253, its economic development arms, convention authorities, utilities, and stadium authorities may partner with or contract to covered companies. Transparent data exchange and GHG Protocol-aligned inventories make those partnerships easier and reduce duplicate reporting.

How 50X Impact helps

Automated Scope 1, 2, and 3 with deterministic outputs

50X Impact is built for organisations that need repeatable, GHG Protocol-aligned calculations across sites, seasons, and events. Automated Scope 1, 2, and 3 workflows, preserved audit trails from source data to disclosed totals, and reporting structured for regulatory and assurance review reduce manual rework before CARB deadlines. The same deterministic approach supports parallel disclosures to investors, sponsors, and league sustainability programmes.

United States policy library

For SB 253, SB 261, federal proposals, and related U.S. instruments in one place, see the United States section of our Climate Policy Library.