The bill, which Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed on Sunday, makes Virginia the latest state to require a transition to 100 percent carbon-free or renewable energy, and the first in the South. This club now includes five other states—California, Hawaii, New Mexico, New York and Washington—plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.
Also, Maine and Nevada have enacted laws that set goals—as opposed to requirements—for 100 percent clean energy.
One lawmaker compared the passage of the statute, which requires the state to move to 100 percent carbon-free energy, to landing on the moon.