On February 26, CARB voted unanimously to adopt the initial regulations implementing SB 253 (Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act) and SB 261 (Climate-Related Financial Risk Act).
The regulations largely track the proposal released by CARB staff on December 23, 2025, and discussed during the November 2025 public workshop. CARB received approximately 80 comment letters and made one substantive modification at the Board’s direction: adoption of a resolution instructing coordination with the California Department of Insurance to evaluate whether and how insurance companies should ultimately fall within SB 253’s reporting scope, while minimizing duplicative reporting burdens.
For SB 253, reports remain due August 10, 2026, notwithstanding the statutory mandate in SB 253 (codified in Health & Safety Code § 38532) to consider industry stakeholder input and take into account the timelines by which companies typically receive emissions data and can attain third-party assurance in establishing the reporting timelines, which support a later or rolling deadline. During the hearing (slides here), multiple stakeholders raised concerns about implementation timelines and data readiness, urging CARB to extend the reporting runway. CARB staff acknowledged those challenges but emphasized the importance of regulatory certainty. Staff indicated that companies are expected to report by the August deadline, although CARB may provide case-by-case relief where appropriate.
Compared to previously floated terms, the final regulations reflect improvements that we believe result from our and other corporate and professional associations’ engagement with CARB and policy makers, including:
· Extension of the SB 253 reporting deadline from June 30 to August 10
· Complete assurance relief for SB 253 for the 2026 reporting cycle
· Enforcement discretion in the initial reporting year, including no submission required in 2026 for companies that were not collecting data or were not planning to collect data, at the time the December 5, 2025, Enforcement Notice was issued or submission to CARB of the same Scope 1 and Scope 2 information the company is already submitting elsewhere. (See Q19 of these November 17, 2025 FAQs)
The Board also confirmed that additional rulemaking will follow, including:
· Further development of Scope 1, Scope 2, and expanded GHG emissions reporting requirements for 2027 and beyond
· Rulemaking related to emissions data assurance
CARB must now respond to public comments and submit the final regulatory package to the California Office of Administrative Law. The regulation will become effective after that process is complete, which is expected to occur in approximately one month.
Litigation challenging SB 253 and SB 261 remains ongoing. As a result, SB 261 remains temporarily enjoined, although the duration of the injunction remains uncertain.
The Society, via our 110-member Working Group, engaged extensively with CARB and other stakeholders throughout the regulatory process, including submitting member-supported data supporting a longer SB 253 reporting runway and advocating for greater implementation flexibility. While the final outcome falls short on several key recommendations, the result was consistent with signals leading up to the hearing, including the political dynamics that CARB staff openly acknowledged during stakeholder engagement. Importantly, meaningful improvements were achieved relative to earlier proposals.
We will continue to monitor and report on the regulatory process, upcoming rulemakings, and litigation developments, as well as engage on future rulemaking proposals.
See this memo from Ropes & Gray and watch for additional information in next week’s Society Alert.