Attorney General Steve Marshall led a 20-state coalition on Monday in filing a brief in a major U.S. Supreme Court case that will decide who is allowed to set the nation's energy policy.
According to the state attorneys general, a climate change liability case out of Hawaii could have "grave" consequences for energy production in the United States.
Marshall said, “If Hawaiians want to rely on solar power, I have no problem with that, but Honolulu cannot force its views onto Alabama—or any other State. Major decisions about our national energy policy must be made at the federal level, not dictated by one lawsuit brought by one city in its own courts.”
“It is especially hypocritical for Honolulu, which has reaped tremendous benefits from fossil fuels for travel and the tourism industry, to try to impose costs on the rest of the Nation, which also depends on energy to meet day-to-day needs," he added.
This follows a coalition Marshall led in September 2023, which sought to block Minnesota's attempt to bring a similar lawsuit in its state courts under Minnesota law. The new brief argues that cases involving interstate emissions must be brought under federal law, not state law. Otherwise, one state’s actions could violate the sovereignty of every other state to set its own energy and environmental goals.
Marshall further argued that Hawaii’s lawsuit creates an interstate controversy, which must be resolved by the federal courts. The Supreme Court must intervene before a state judge in Hawaii has the chance to impose what would be a massive tax on the energy system.
The Alabama AG told Fox News Channel on Tuesday that Alabamians "absolutely object to a state court judge in Hawaii ultimately determining how it is that we deal with the fossil fuel industry here in this country."
Marshall led the 20-state brief with support from Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.
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