Date: 31-Mar-11
Country: USA
Author: Marianne Russ

A parking structure at the University of California San Diego uses innovative solar trees to collect renewable energy from the Sun February 8, 2011.
Photo: Reuters/Mike Blake

California lawmakers on Tuesday voted to raise the state's renewable energy goals, passing a bill that would require a third of electricity to come from sources such as solar and wind by 2020.

Governor Jerry Brown, a Democrat, has not said whether he will sign the bill, which was passed by the state Assembly 55 to 19 on Tuesday. The state Senate had already passed the clean energy target, which will apply to all power providers.

State regulators implementing California's 2006 climate change law already had set a 33 percent renewables goal, but the law strengthens the target considerably. The target could have been put on hold by the governor, for instance, under the 2006 climate change law.

(Editing by Marguerita Choy)

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