Attorney General Rob Bonta Sues Trump Administration for Halting Offshore Wind Power Developments
Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a new lawsuit against the Trump administration on Monday, suing them for attempting to “freeze the development of offshore wind energy” along with 17 other attorneys general from across the country.
According to State of New York v. Donald Trump, Bonta and the attorneys general allege that Trump’s January 2oth memorandum for the temporary withdrawal of offshore wind power leases is against the law. Multiple violated federal laws were highlighted in the suit, with the Administrative Procedure Act, a federal law that focus on the proper way for federal agencies to develop and issue regulations, being chief amongst them. In addition, they stated that the memorandum hurts their respective states’ efforts to develop clean energy, fight pollution, and address climate change. It was additionally pointed out that the memorandum also hurt their already large investments in wind power, and could cost billions in construction and infrastructure development, as well as cause the loss of many offshore wind power related jobs.
“The Trump Administration’s directive to halt the development of offshore wind energy is illegal,” said Bonta in a statement. “This reckless directive will not only reverse America’s progress in clean energy initiatives, but our communities will also suffer the economic consequences of the President’s misguided lawlessness. The President has promised that his actions would lower energy costs, but instead, energy prices have only gone up and will continue to skyrocket. In California, we will continue to hold the President accountable for breaking the law and protect our significant progress in expanding cleaner, cheaper energy for American families.
President Trump’s memorandum states he has the authority granted to him as President in section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, noting that the Temporary Cessation is “in light of various alleged legal deficiencies underlying the Federal Government’s leasing and permitting of onshore and offshore wind projects, the consequences of which may lead to grave harm — including negative impacts on navigational safety interests, transportation interests, national security interests, commercial interests, and marine mammals.”
“On January 20, President Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum that, among other things, indefinitely halted all federal approvals necessary for the development of offshore and onshore wind energy projects pending federal review. Pursuant to this directive, federal agencies have stopped all permitting and approval activities. Wind energy is a homegrown source of reliable, affordable energy that supports hundreds of thousands of jobs, creates billions of dollars in economic activity and tax payments, and already supplies more than 10% of the country’s electricity.
“In addition to relying on onshore wind energy, in California, there are also currently five federal offshore wind leases off of California’s coast. Two are located offshore by Humboldt, while the remaining three are offshore from Morro Bay. These new developments are designed to bring substantial amounts of clean energy to the grid, including enough to power 1.6 million homes and potentially more. The President’s directive will not only derail the clean energy transition, but will also threaten to increase consumer energy costs. The President’s directive also jeopardizes substantial economic benefits to California, including the creation of thousands of union jobs, increased tax revenue particularly in the Humboldt area, and the provision of more than $50 million to support communities, Native American Tribes, or other interested parties that are expected to be affected by the lease development.”
A suit over offshore wind power
New York Attorney General Letitia James likewise addressed the urgency of the matter on Monday. She noted that the federal government recently halted the Empire 1 offshore wind project that was approved by the Biden administration, with Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum calling it a rushed project. As New York law has the state needing to meet 70% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% by 2040, the wind farm was critical in helping the state reach those goals.
“This administration is devastating one of our nation’s fastest-growing sources of clean, reliable, and affordable energy,” added James. “This arbitrary and unnecessary directive threatens the loss of thousands of good-paying jobs and billions in investments, and it is delaying our transition away from the fossil fuels that harm our health and our planet.”
Along with Bonta and James, the attorneys general of Massachusetts, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington are behind the suit. The list is notable as many of the states are landlocked with no access to the oceans or Great Lakes.
However, the Trump administration defended the memorandum Monday, vowing to defend the new federal stance. In particular, they pointed out that offshore wind farms stood in the way of high energy production and lower energy prices.
“Instead of working with President Trump to unleash American energy and lower prices for American families, Democrat Attorneys General are using lawfare to stop the President’s popular energy agenda,” explained White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers. “The American people voted for the President to restore America’s energy dominance, and Americans in blue states should not have to pay the price of the Democrats’ radical climate agenda.”
The suit is to be heard at the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts in Boston soon. Both sides have already hinted at possible appeals in the future depending on which way the court goes.