“For years, we have raised concerns about the supply chain supporting the state’s aggressive push toward zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), and yet the governor and the legislators backing this bill are still pushing the rapid investment in this technology. SB 260 requires publicly and privately held companies to disclose their carbon emissions, including non-core functions like supply chains. For ‘green’ companies that rely on lithium-ion batteries, including ones that power ZEVs and solar battery storage, they will be required to report on where and how those batteries are produced and quantify GHG emissions in their supply chain. This will include reporting on the factories in China that produce 75 percent of the world’s battery cells, 100 percent of graphite, 57 percent of lithium, and 86 percent of anode processing. In addition, a vast majority of the Cobalt needed to produce ZEV battery cells comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with little or no environmental regulations and a laundry list of human rights violations. Requiring so-called ‘green’ companies to quantify the impact their mining and manufacturing operations overseas have on global carbon emissions will uncover a decades-old dirty little secret and may help promote better-informed decision-making here at home. The governor wants to invest $1.5 billion on this technology, choosing winners and losers rather than allowing diversified investments in clean alternatives like hydrogen.”