On April 30, 2025, the Trump administration filed a lawsuit against the State of Hawaii seeking to block the State from pursuing a climate change lawsuit against fossil fuel companies. On the same day, the United States also filed a <a href="https://climatecasechart.com/case/united-states-v-michigan/">similar lawsuit</a> against the State of Michigan. The Hawaii complaint cited a news article reporting on Hawaii’s intention to file such a lawsuit. The complaint alleged that the United States was bringing the lawsuits “to vindicate its sovereign, proprietary, and parens patriae interests.” The alleged sovereign interests included ensuring that states do not interfere with federal law such as the Clean Air Act or the federal government’s “exclusive authority over interstate and foreign commerce”; the alleged proprietary interests included the U.S.’s economic interests in revenue from fossil fuel leasing on federal lands and in costs for purchasing fossil fuels; and its parens patriae interests related to protecting “the economic well-being of its citizens and the national energy market” from the “nationwide economic and constitutional injuries” allegedly caused by state lawsuits against fossil fuel companies. The United States asserted that the claims in the lawsuit Hawaii intended to file were preempted by the Clean Air Act “because they impermissibly regulate out-of-state greenhouse gas emissions and obstruct the Clean Air Act’s comprehensive federal-state framework and EPA’s regulatory discretion.” The U.S. also claimed that the claims against fossil fuel companies were preempted under the Foreign Affairs Doctrine. In addition, the U.S. asserted that the anticipated lawsuit constituted unconstitutional extraterritorial regulation, in violation of due process and concepts of state sovereignty and federalism. The complaint also asserted violations of the Interstate and Foreign Commerce Clauses. The United States requested that the court declare the State's claims unconstitutional and permanently enjoin the State “from taking actions to assert … state law claims.” The day after the United States filed this lawsuit, Hawaii filed its <a href="https://climatecasechart.com/case/state-of-hawaii-v-bp-plc/">lawsuit</a> in state court.

Lawsuit brought by the Trump administration to block an anticipated climate lawsuit by the State of Hawaii against fossil fuel industry defendants.

United States v. Hawaii

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Trump Administration Sued Hawaii to Block Anticipated Climate Suit Against Fossil Fuel Companies

Filed

United States of America

Hawaii

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Trump Administration Sued Hawaii to Block Anticipated Climate Suit Against Fossil Fuel Companies

Policy instrument

Risk

Fossil fuel

Greenhouse gas

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance