Ten Democratic governors, including California Governor Gavin Newsom, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, and Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker, called on Congress to reject a bill that would grant oil and gas companies immunity in climate-related lawsuits.
In their letter to Congress, the governors stated that wildfires, floods, storms, and heat waves resulting from the burning of fossil fuels are becoming increasingly destructive, and that taxpayers should not have to bear the cost of these disasters.
Stop Climate Shakedowns Act of 2026
Democratic governors and attorneys general want to block the bill named the 'Stop Climate Shakedowns Act of 2026,' which they argue would provide immunity to the oil and gas industries in lawsuits at the expense of taxpayers.
Republicans, however, argue that the bill protects against lawsuits that could bankrupt the American energy sector, lead to job losses, and increase electricity and gasoline prices.
The bill was introduced in April by Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz and Wyoming Republican Representative Harriet Hageman. If passed, more than a dozen lawsuits filed by local and state governments against oil and gas industries would be dropped.
Reaction from the Energy Institute
Jason Isaac, CEO of the American Energy Institute, told Fox News Digital that this is 'a coordinated legal campaign aimed at bankrupting legitimate American energy producers with meritless lawsuits.'
Isaac said, 'These companies legally produced the energy that heats and cools homes, powers hospitals, and fuels the American economy; now a coalition of activist attorneys general and climate advocacy groups wants to retroactively punish them for doing exactly that.'
Michael Toth, research director at the Civitas Institute, told Fox News Digital that after activists' efforts to implement EU-style climate measures failed, they turned to attempting to impose a global carbon tax through the courts.
California's Lawsuit and the Supreme Court
California sued several major oil companies in 2023 as part of broader Democratic efforts to hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for climate change. The lawsuit is ongoing.
Governor Newsom said in a post on X at the time, 'These companies knew about the devastating consequences of fossil fuels. They covered it up. They suppressed scientific data. They spent millions to sow doubt about climate science. Now it's time to pay the price.'
The letters from Democratic members and attorneys general came as the Supreme Court is set to hear a case in its fall term filed by officials in Boulder, Colorado, against ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy.
More than 70 Republican members of the House of Representatives also called on the Supreme Court to reject the attempt to hold big oil companies liable for climate change damages, describing the case as a costly 'war on American energy.'
O. H. Skinner, executive director of the Alliance for Consumers, told Fox News Digital that elected officials should 'oppose the climate lawfare campaign and stop left-wing activists from using vigilante lawfare tactics to impose their unpopular political beliefs through the courts.'
