New Mexico passes bill requiring state’s electricity come from renewable energy

The New Mexico legislature passed a bill that would require the state to get 100 percent of its electricity from renewable resources.

The state would get all of its electricity from publicly regulated utilities from renewable and carbon-free resources by 2045, according to NPR.

The bill now goes to to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D), who already signaled she plans to sign it.

{mosads}Grisham’s office put out a statement immediately after the House voted, calling the passing of the bill “a promise to future generations of New Mexicans. When we were presented the chance to move toward cleaner sources of energy, we took it, boldly charting a course to a carbon-free future, permanently centering our commitment to lower emissions and setting an example for other states,” according to the Santa Fe New Mexican.

The bill passed with a vote of 43-22 in the state’s Democrat-led legislature.

The goal is for the state to have a portfolio of 50 percent renewable energy by 2030 and 80 percent by 2045, NPR reported.

If signed into law, New Mexico would join Hawaii and California as the only other states with 100 percent renewable energy goals.

“This is a state that is not in climate denial,” she says. “We are clear that we have basically a decade to begin to turn things around and New Mexico needs [to] and will do its part,” Grisham said, according to NPR.

The passage of the legislation comes as the state is breaking oil production records, pitting one of New Mexico’s most lucrative industries against climate concerns.