ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) _ Gov. Tim Walz has set an ambitious goal for Minnesota to get 100 percent of its electricity from carbon-free sources by 2050.

Walz said at a news conference Monday that his clean energy proposals would put Minnesota at the forefront of addressing climate change.

The Democratic governor says his proposals build on the success of Minnesota's Next Generation Energy Act, which passed in 2007 and was signed into law by Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty. That law requires Minnesota utilities to get at least 25 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2025. The state achieved that goal in 2017 thanks to the growth of wind and solar power.

Environmental and climate change groups welcomed the governor's proposals, while Republican leaders said they'd cause Minnesotans' electric bills to skyrocket.

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