Energy and Environment

Alex is determined to fight the existential threat of climate change. Having grown up in a low-income, heavily polluted neighborhood, he is dedicated to ensuring that every family has access to clean air and clean water. He served for six years as Chair of the California State Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Communications, where he led the development of California’s ambitious renewable energy and climate policies that now serve as a model for the rest of the country. Alex’s environmental leadership has continued in the U.S. Senate. In addition to cosponsoring the Green New Deal, Alex introduced sweeping legislation to electrify our nation’s school buses and protect over one million acres of public lands in California, increasing access to nature and preserving California’s natural treasures for generations to come.

Alex understands the threat that increasingly frequent and catastrophic natural disasters and extreme weather events pose to California and the Western United States. That’s why he fought to secure millions of dollars in federal funding for flood control infrastructure to protect communities from catastrophic floods and rising sea levels. His bill the POWER ON Act was signed into law by President Biden to prevent utility outages caused by natural disasters like wildfires and other extreme weather events. And while California continues to face the threat of devastating wildfires, Alex led the successful passage of the FIRE Act, to modernize the way FEMA prepares for and responds to wildfires.

Recent News

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.), along with Representative Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.-19), led all members of the California Democratic Congressional delegation in demanding that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reverse harmful federal program...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On César Chávez Day, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Representative Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.-25) introduced bicameral legislation to create the César E. Chávez and the Farmworker Movement National Historical Park. This bill would preserve the nationally significant sites...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) secured a commitment from Jessica Kramer, nominee for Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to help address the ongoing Tijuana River transboundary pollution crisis...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.), along with Representative Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.-19), led all members of the California Democratic Congressional delegation in demanding that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reverse harmful federal program...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On César Chávez Day, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Representative Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.-25) introduced bicameral legislation to create the César E. Chávez and the Farmworker Movement National Historical Park. This bill would preserve the nationally significant sites...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) secured a commitment from Jessica Kramer, nominee for Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to help address the ongoing Tijuana River transboundary pollution crisis...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Representative Sam Liccardo (D-Calif.-16) introduced legislation to expand and improve the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The bicameral bill would allow the National Park Service to acquire the 896-acre Scarper Ridge...
ALTADENA, CA — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) joined the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), local leaders, and representatives from the Small Business Administration (SBA), Environmental Protection Agency, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.), along with Representatives Scott Peters (D-Calif.-50) and Juan Vargas (D-Calif.-52), invited Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin to visit San Diego’s South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant...
Padilla joins effort to stop “further pain at a time of high food prices and instability within U.S. agricultural markets” WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined Senator Adam Schiff and 29 other Senators in demanding that the U.S....
Senators: “While the fires have been extinguished, veterans will have ongoing needs for months if not years ahead” WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.) urged Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Doug Collins...
Legislation would support growers in California, Oregon, and Washington — three of the biggest wine-producing states in the country WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), along with Representatives Mike Thompson (D-Calif.-04) and Doug LaMalfa...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff (both D-Calif.) issued the following joint statement after the Trump Administration announced its intent to roll back dozens of the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulations that protect our air and...