Two measures authored by state Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) were signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown at the Global Climate Summit on a cruise aboard the first plug-in hybrid electric ferry boat out in the middle of San Francisco Bay.

(photo by Joe McHugh, California Highway Patrol)

The governor signed Allen’s Senate Bill 720, which requires environmental principles and concepts to be incorporated into the curriculum for K-12 students, directs the superintendent of public instruction to increase environmental literacy in schools and encourages governing boards of school districts to promote environmental literacy. Allen chairs the Senate Education Committee.

The governor also signed SB 1016, which removes barriers to electric vehicle ownership by condominium residents by eliminating the requirement that they purchase a $1 million insurance policy on vehicle charging equipment installed at the condo complex.

“California has enacted aggressive, meaningful policies on climate change, but if we can’t find a way to scale and sell these policies to the rest of the world, it won’t be enough to save our planet,” Allen said, noting the significance of the Global Climate Summit, which brought together leaders from across the globe. “That’s why the conversations taking place at this Global Summit are so crucial and important.”

Allen chairs the legislature’s Environmental Caucus.