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Assembly adopts resolution urging state review of 'maladaptation' in climate planning
Summary
The Assembly adopted SCR 50 on June 4, urging the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation to develop criteria to identify maladaptation in climate policies and investments. The measure was presented by Assemblymember Schultz on behalf of Sen. Henry Stern and passed by voice vote after adding 54 coauthors.
The California State Assembly on June 4 adopted Senate Concurrent Resolution 50, which urges the Governor's Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation to examine regulatory approaches and recommend criteria to identify and avoid “maladaptation” — actions that unintentionally increase vulnerability to climate impacts. The resolution was presented on the Assembly floor by Assemblymember Schultz on behalf of Sen. Henry Stern and was adopted by voice vote after 54 members were added as coauthors.
Assemblymember Schultz told colleagues the resolution asks the state to develop consistent criteria so agencies can assess whether climate-response policies might cause “increased greenhouse gas emissions, increased or shifted vulnerability to climate change, more inequitable outcomes, or diminished welfare.” Schultz cited the Los Angeles River flood-control example — a hardened channel that reduced flooding locally while missing opportunities for stormwater capture, groundwater recharge and heat resiliency — as a case of unintended maladaptation.
Schultz cited multiple economic estimates to underscore the stakes of planning failures: recent wildfires could reduce labor income by up to $3.7 billion and cost federal, state and local governments hundreds of millions in lost tax revenue; the total cost to rebuild and recover from certain disasters was cited as $270 billion; seven extreme heat events were cited at about $7.7 billion in cumulative costs; and a large statewide flood could cause damages in the range of $1 trillion. Schultz also told members that roughly one in five Californians face flood risk and that all 58 counties have experienced severe flood emergencies.
SCR 50 is a policy advisory resolution aimed at improving state-level guidance; it does not itself change regulatory standards or appropriate funds. The resolution asks state agencies to develop criteria to help direct climate investments toward resilience measures that avoid maladaptation and maximize co-benefits such as groundwater recharge and heat mitigation.
Coauthors added: 54. Adoption: voice vote, ayes have it.
