Some US states are at the cutting edge of climate change policy while other states have done next to nothing. Climate action comes in varying shapes and sizes but the end goal is always to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions - primarily CO2 and methane. These GHG reductions can be found in transportation, manufacturing, building sustainability, agriculture, land preservation, and more. While technology is a huge driver of our ability to reduce emissions, the “free market” isn’t handling climate change as fast as it should be. Many US state governments are opting to intervene with policies that reign in polluters and encourage sustainable behavior.
These rankings were developed using a policy scoring system roughly based on the following:
Expected GHG reductions;
Environmental Justice/Equity;
Biodiversity preservation; and
Elected officials willingness to act
There are many ways state governments are fighting climate change - they are increasing electric vehicle sales, investing in clean energy, leveraging the social cost of carbon, and more. Each policy in the ranking is weighted according to GHG reductions, social equity, and sustainability. The methodology and brief analysis can be found at the bottom of this page.
The list below will show you where your state government ranks in mitigating GHG emissions.
US State Climate Policy Ranking and Score
50th - Wyoming - 1.01
49th - Utah - 1.04
48th - Arizona - 1.04
47th - West Virginia - 1.07
46th - South Dakota - 1.08
45th - Idaho - 1.09
44th - North Dakota - 1.08
43rd - Kentucky - 1.13
42nd - Tennessee - 1.13
41st - Florida - 1.14
40th - Oklahoma - 1.15
39th - Alabama - 1.18
38th - Alaska - 1.19
37th - Missouri - 1.26
36th - Montana - 1.26
35th - Kansas - 1.29
34th - Georgia - 1.31
33rd - Wisconsin - 1.31
32nd - Texas - 1.32
31st - Arkansas - 1.43
30th - South Carolina - 2.2
29th - Louisiana - 2.24
28th - Indiana - 2.25
27th - Iowa - 2.52
26th - Mississippi - 3.27
25th - Ohio - 4.27
24th - Nebraska - 4.32
23rd - Pennsylvania - 4.95
22nd - New Hampshire - 5.47
21st - Michigan - 5.47
20th - Illinois - 5.61
19th - New Mexico - 6.53
18th - North Carolina - 7.31
17th - Delaware - 9.6
16th - Hawaii - 9.75
15th - Minnesota - 9.79
14th - Rhode Island - 10.84
13th - Nevada - 11.51
12th - Colorado - 11.91
11th - Vermont - 12.62
10th - Maine - 13.5
9th - Virginia - 13.9
8th - Oregon - 14.97
7th - Connecticut - 15.1
6th - Maryland - 15.68
5th - Massachusetts - 15.8
4th - New Jersey - 16.54
3rd - Washington - 19.51
2nd - California - 21.99
1st - New York - 22.63
Methodology
States were given weighted points based on the types of GHG-mitigating legislation they have passed, the overall sustainability of their infrastructure, the likelihood of passing their next climate bill, and environmental preservation. As seen in the chart below, some policies have greater GHG-reducing effects and are worth more points. This chart is not exhaustive, but gives a decent look at how far all the states have come, relative to each other. Zoom in to the chart to view the full list of climate policies considered and their relative importance to the ranking.
About half of the states are doing nothing to fight climate change, and the other half aren’t doing enough except for maybe California, Washington, and New York. These are some of the most liberal states in the nation. In fact, all the states on the right side of the graph are liberal-leaning.
Roughly 60% of state-level legislatures are controlled by the GOP, yet the more Democrats your state has in office, the more likely it is that your state has enacted meaningful climate policy.
State-level politics matter more than ever!