Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt announced on Monday that his company plans to cut ties with the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), and that funding the conservative group was a "mistake." According to the Huffington Post, Schmidt said that the main reason Google is backing out is because it wants to avoid aligning with groups that deny climate change.

The Huffington Post reports that ALEC is an organization made up of conservative state legislators and private sector interests that drafts model legislation for various states. It has been known to promote fossil fuel interests and climate change skepticism, and has attracted attention for drafting bills that weaken labor unions and gun restrictions.

According to the National Journal, more than 50 public-interest organizations sent a letter to Google's executives asking it to divorce itself from ALEC, in part for its positions on environmental policy. It seems that Google listened - in a recent statement, ALEC CEO Lisa Nelson indicated a separation had already taken place. She called Google's departure "a result of public pressure from left-leaning individuals and organizations who intentionally confuse free market policy perspectives for climate change denial."

In an interview with NPR's Diane Rehm, Schmidt stated that Google would drop its ALEC membership "in the future," but did not specify a date. When asked for more specific details on Google's viewpoint on the issue, Schmidt stated, "Well, the company has a very strong view that we should make decisions in politics based on facts-what a shock...And the facts of climate change are not in question anymore. Everyone understands climate change is occurring, and the people who oppose it are really hurting our children and our grandchildren and making the world a much worse place. And so we should not be aligned with such people - they're just, they're just literally lying."

Google has now made it clear that it is aligned with green initiatives and the promotion of renewable energy. On its website, it states that it is committed to eventually operating on 100% renewable energy, and that it has made agreements to fund more than $1.5 billion in renewable energy projects.