by Capital and Main
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who has just been tapped as Kamala Harris’ running mate, has quietly become one of the country’s most aggressive advocates for taking action on climate change. Under his leadership, Minnesota has adopted some of the most ambitious climate policies in the nation — including a law he signed in 2023 that requires the state to generate all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2040. During that legislative session, Walz and state lawmakers pushed through at least 40 other climate-related initiatives.
“The idea [is] that we can create a clean energy future where we can protect our water, protect our land, and do that in a manner that grows the economy in Minnesota,” Walz said in announcing those initiatives.
Under the clean-electricity law, Minnesota is on track to transition to clean-energy sources even faster than California, which is often seen as America’s trailblazer when it comes to climate action. It’s also more ambitious than a requirement that President Biden tried to include in his landmark Inflation Reduction Act.
Walz’s selection by Harris was hailed by leading environmental groups. “In his time serving in Congress and as Governor, he has worked to protect clean air and water, grow our clean energy economy, and see to it that we do all we can to avoid the very worst of the climate crisis,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous in a statement.