Get Ready for California Climate Disclosure

Learn how Persefoni's AI-driven platform can help your business meet the requirements of California's new climate laws.

Golden State Rules: California SB 253 & SB 261

California Leads The Way

California has passed two pieces of major climate legislation.

The Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (SB 253) will require public and private US businesses with revenues over $1 billion that do business in California to report their scopes 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions. The bill mandates third-party assurance on reported emissions.

The Climate-Related Financial Risk Act (SB 261) will require large corporations to prepare and submit an annual report that publicly discloses their climate-related financial risks and the measures they’re taking to mitigate these risks.

Despite proposed delays and legal challenges, companies must prepare to report on FY2025 data in 2026.

Given that California is the 4th largest economy in the world and that SB 253 requires scope 3 emission disclosures – indirect emissions related to companies’ value chains – this bill will have significant implications for the economy and environment.

Persefoni Chief Decarbonization Officer Mike Wallace and EVP Russ Mitchell, with bill sponsors and SB 253 author Sen. Scott Wiener, outside the Assembly chamber following the 49-20 vote.

Key Dates for California Climate Disclosure

2026

Companies to report scopes 1 and 2 emissions for the prior fiscal year in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP)
Companies to obtain limited assurance over their scope 1 and 2 emissions disclosures

2027

Companies to report scope 3 emissions in accordance with the GHGP for the prior fiscal year

2030

Companies to obtain reasonable assurance over their scopes 1 and 2 emissions disclosures and limited assurance over their scope 3 emissions disclosures

How Persefoni helps prepare you for California Climate Disclosure

We recommend you start preparing for California climate disclosure now. Beginning early will enable you to establish strong controls over your emissions data and reporting. Scrambling at the last minute can lead to incomplete data, inaccurate disclosures, poor controls, audit exceptions, and increased litigation and reputational risk.

Here are 4 ways that Persefoni can help you prepare for California climate disclosure.

01

Accurately and quickly calculate your carbon footprint

Persefoni enables you to turn your existing business data into an accurate carbon footprint. Persefoni’s integrated Emissions Calculation Engine – aligned with both the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP) and the Partnership for Carbon Accounting Fundamentals (PCAF) – leverages a global set of out-of-the-box emission factors and lets you create custom emissions factors unique to your business.

02

Create a single source of truth for your emissions

Before you disclose your carbon footprint, minimize your climate disclosure risks with a platform that provides the transparency and traceability required for assurance. Persefoni’s Carbon Activity Ledger helps ensure your carbon footprint is auditable, scalable, actionable, and protected with enterprise-grade security. The best way to avoid questions from regulators, as well as greenwashing claims, is to show your work. That’s exactly what our Carbon Activity Ledger is built for.

03

Take full control of your carbon data and disclosures

No matter where you are on your climate journey, you need data you can trust to make business decisions and disclose with confidence. That trust starts and ends with data controls – the policies, processes, and systems you have in place to ensure data security and integrity. Spreadsheet-driven carbon footprints are error-prone, opaque, and difficult to audit. That’s why Persefoni is software-driven. Persefoni allows you to manage your climate data with the same accuracy, transparency, and control as your financial data.

04

Streamline your carbon accounting and disclosures

Persefoni’s secure, cloud-based platform and robust collaboration tools help simplify and accelerate the measurement of your carbon footprint. Save time by collecting high-quality emissions data directly from suppliers via auditable data requests, even if they are not Persefoni users. Increase data accuracy with Persefoni’s AI-driven error and anomaly detection functionality. Streamline your carbon accounting with Persefoni’s in-platform emission factor recommendations.

Leading Climate Expertise

Our Sustainability Advisory Board members – having founded the CDP, SASB, and TCFD, as well as helping architect climate disclosure at the SEC and EFRAG – are the foremost experts in climate, sustainability, and disclosure. Combined with our leaders in global policy, regulated reporting, and carbon accounting, we’re here to guide you through the new era of climate disclosure.