Federal Court Strikes Down New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act
On August 31, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York struck down New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act (the Act). As we reported when the Act was signed into law in 2024, the Act established a Climate Change Adaptation Cost Recovery Program authorizing New York to recover $75 billion over 25 years from fossil fuel companies for their alleged contributions to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As we also reported when challengers filed suit in February 2025, a coalition of twenty-two states and multiple industry associations had argued that the Act was preempted by the Clean Air Act (CAA) and violated the Supremacy Clause, among other issues. Chief U.S. District Court Judge Brenda K. Sannes agreed, granting summary judgment in favor of the challengers and holding that the Act is preempted by federal law and cannot be enforced.
States Challenge New York’s Climate Superfund Act
The Climate Superfund Act (Act), signed into law by New York Governor Kathy Hochul on December 26, 2024, faces a substantial lawsuit filed by a coalition of states and industry participants. As described in our previous post here, the Act authorizes the state government to unilaterally levy billions of dollars in fines on fossil fuel companies over the next two decades for alleged contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
