Business & Finance
Federal judge strikes down New York's $75 billion climate fund law targeting fossil fuel producers
A federal judge ruled the 2024 law unlawfully encroached on federal authority, national energy policy, and foreign affairs.
The short version
- U.S. District Judge Brenda Sannes invalidated New York's 2024 law requiring major fossil fuel producers to pay $75 billion into a state climate resiliency fund.
- The ruling found that the law conflicted with federal authority under the Clean Air Act and breached foreign affairs doctrine by seeking payments from global companies.
- Fossil fuel interests, business groups, 22 Republican state attorneys general, and federal agencies had challenged the legislation in court.
- Governor Kathy Hochul's administration stated it is reviewing the decision to decide its next steps, while climate activists are pushing for an appeal.
Key facts
- U.S. District Judge Brenda Sannes ruled that New York's 2024 climate law impermissibly reached into federal territory governed by national environmental and energy policies.[Associated Press · ABC News]
- The struck-down statute required major greenhouse gas emitters from 2000 to 2018 to collectively pay $3 billion annually over 25 years into a climate resiliency fund.[Associated Press · ABC News]
- Opponents who challenged the law in court included energy companies, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, 22 Republican state attorneys general, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.[Associated Press · ABC News]
- Judge Sannes determined that assessing damages against international producers violates the constitutional foreign affairs doctrine.[Associated Press · ABC News]
- The U.S. Department of Justice praised the ruling, characterizing it as enforcement of President Donald Trump's order to curb state regulation of American energy.[Associated Press · ABC News]
What remains uncertain
- It is uncertain whether the Hochul administration will file an appeal against the federal court ruling.[Associated Press · ABC News]