Climate Lobbying Overview Edison International (Edison) demonstrates active and mostly positive engagement with US federal and state climate change policy. Its subsidiary Southern California Edison (SCE) engages with mostly positive positions in California. The company advocates for ambitious federal and state policies toward achieving near-term decarbonization targets, but appears to have mixed positions on rooftop solar and the transition from fossil gas. In addition, CEO Pedro Pizarro serves as the vice chairman of the Edison Electric Institute, which has offered mixed support for climate provisions in the Biden administration reconciliation bill and continues to lobby for a long-term role for fossil gas.

Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Edison has positive top-line messaging on climate policy. During the ongoing infrastructure negotiations in the summer and fall of 2021, the company signed a joint letter to Congress in July advocating for an accelerated transition to a net-zero economy. CEO Pedro Pizarro has also been vocal on climate, emphasizing in September 2021 the need for more ambitious state and federal policies to properly address climate change in the near term. In a February 2022 interview with the Washington Post, Pizarro emphasized his concerns about the cost of inaction on the federal Build Back Better Act's climate provisions. The company has been a signatory to the We Are Still Initiative since its origin in 2017, calling for the incoming Biden administration in December 2020 to rejoin the Paris Agreement and commit to a trajectory of climate neutrality by 2050 or sooner. In April 2021, Edison signed an open letter to President Biden advocating for the US’s Nationally Determined Contribution to be at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030.

Engagement with Climate-Related Policy Edison engages on federal and state climate-related policies with mostly positive positions. In February 2022, Edison signed a joint letter organized by C2ES that advocated to Congressional leadership to pass the clean energy tax credits in the Build Back Better Act. That same month, following the utility roundtable with President Biden to discuss the Build Back Better Act, CEO Pizarro reiterated his support for the legislation's tax credits in an interview with the Washington Post. Pizarro has continued to advocate for the passage of the tax credits, including in a March 2022 E&E News article and a June 2022 blog. In April 2021, the utility signed a joint letter with the Ceres and the Corporate Electric Vehicle Alliance (CEVA) to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in support of more ambitious light-duty vehicle fuel economy and GHG emissions standards. In March 2021, together with California utilities Pacific Gas & Electric and San Diego Gas & Electric, Edison subsidiary Southern California Edison (SCE) advocated to the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy to resume the rulemaking process for federal energy efficiency standards for appliances. However, in March 2021, SCE advocated to California regulators to weaken rooftop solar subsidies in the state’s Net Energy Metering program.

Positioning on Energy Transition Edison International has a mostly positive position on the energy transition and related policy. In its September 2021 Mind the Gap policy paper, the utility advocated for specific state and federal policies to meet 2030 decarbonization goals and to facilitate the electrification of the power, transportation, and building sectors. The company has supported decarbonization targets, stating support for President Biden’s goal of decarbonizing the power sector by 2035 in March 2021 and California’s target of decarbonizing its economy by 2045 in June 2021. During California’s 2022 Energy Code Update rulemaking in June 2021, SCE advocated to the California Energy Commission (CEC) for an all-electric new construction code with electric retrofits. After the CEC adopted 2022 standards that fell short of an all-electric code, in August 2021 SCE advocated for a “2025 Energy Code that fully electrifies new construction.”

Edison International has been positive on the electrification of transport. In a March 2022 blog, CEO Pizarro appeared to support the electric vehicle tax credits in the Build Back Better Act. In April 2021, the utility signed a letter to federal policymakers with CEVA to advocate for policies toward the electrification of the transportation sector. March 2021, Pizarro authored an article for the Wall Street Journal in which he advocated for grid policies toward the electrification of transportation, and in a February 2021 earnings call, he supported Governor Newsom’s executive order on zero-emission vehicles. However, recent statements on the energy transition by Pizarro have been mixed. On an April 2021 earnings call, Pizarro appeared to suggest that the Biden administration decarbonization targets may not be feasible, stating that the target of 80% reductions from 2005 levels for the power sector by 2030 “may really be stretching.” In addition, at the Reuters Global Energy Transition conference in June 2021, Pizarro appeared to support IPCC-aligned reductions in natural gas by reportedly stating that gas would make up 6% of wholesale power in 2045; however, it is unclear whether Pizarro was referring to global production or company operations, or if he mentioned conditions on CCS deployment and methane abatement measures at the conference.

Industry Association Governance Edison International discloses its trade association memberships across several sources, including its 2020 Sustainability Report and corporate governance documents on its website. The company broadly states that it may occasionally hold different policy positions from these associations, but does not describe the positions of these groups or its attempts to influence them. It has not published a formal review of its industry associations. Subsidiary Southern California Edison is a board member of the California Chamber of Commerce, which has opposed a range of state climate policies in the 2021-2022 legislative session. The company is also a member of the Business Roundtable and Edison Electric Institute, both of which demonstrate mixed positions on climate policy. CEO Pizarro serves as the Vice Chairman of the Edison Electric Institute.