For the second time in a month, a federal judge has ruled that New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act is unconstitutional – further damaging the chancesor passage of a similar bill in New Jersey that would retroactively penalize energy companies $50 billion for legally providing fossil fuels.
On Sept. 23, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted the United States’ motion for summary judgment and invalidated New York’s “Climate Change Superfund Act.”
The court held the law is unconstitutional and enjoined the state from imposing $75 billion in penalties on global energy producers for what supporters of the law alleged as local effects of climate change.
That follows a ruling from Aug. 31, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York also ruled against the state.
“Both federal judges considering New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act have held it unconstitutional,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Energy and Natural Resources Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. “Both hold that the federal government is responsible for setting national policy on global pollution, not states.”
NJBIA Deputy Chief Government Affairs Officer Ray Cantor, who has led a large coalition opposing New Jersey’s Climate Superfund Act over the past two years, said the continuing rulings of unconstitutionality of the New York law, including preemption of the federal Clean Air Act, was foreseeable.
He also said New York’s law is “legally indistinguishable from New Jersey’s proposed legislation.”
“We continue to urge the supporters of this legislation in New Jersey to recognize that this bill is unfair, punitive to consumers, damaging to New Jersey jobs, and now, clearly unconstitutional,” Cantor said. “We should not even be considering this bill based on the legal costs our state will incur, while federal judges are deeming it unconstitutional.”
“We look forward to having a productive conversation with the Legislature and the Sherrill administration on real solutions to climate change and resiliency.”
