(The Center Square) — New York is leading a coalition of Northeast states in suing the Trump administration to block agreements with two energy companies that would scrap several offshore wind projects, claiming taxpayer money is being used to pay off the companies.
In a pair of lawsuits, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Courts in New York and Maine, James and seven other Democratic attorneys general argue the Trump administration's deals with Bluepoint Wind and Invenergy, would "unlawfully misuse taxpayer dollars and sabotage states’ ability to meet growing energy demands."
The lawsuits allege that the Trump administration struck a deal with the companies to cancel four offshore wind leases and pay the companies nearly $1.4 billion to settle their costs. In exchange, the company agreed to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in oil and gas projects and pledged not to develop any new offshore wind projects, the lawsuit claims.
James, in a statement, blasted the deals and said Americans "are facing increasing energy costs because this administration would rather pay off energy companies than let us build the new power sources we need."
"These illegal backroom deals take money that should have gone toward lowering New Yorkers' bills and hand it to fossil fuel projects in other states, all while our energy demand continues to grow," she said. "At a moment when every available resource should go to keeping the lights on and prices down, this administration is choosing corruption over communities. We will fight until these unlawful deals are struck down."
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, praised the attorneys general for filing the legal challenge and said the two canceled New York projects alone were expected to bring more than $16 billion in investments to the state and create more than 2,800 new jobs. She said the projects planned to connect directly to New York City’s electric grid, "providing a new source of electricity at a time when the state anticipates significant growth in demand."
"The Trump administration's unlawful pay-to-not-play scheme to pressure companies to forego planned offshore wind projects in America is an outrageous abuse of taxpayer dollars that hurts our ability to meet our energy needs, reduce emissions, create good paying jobs, and help secure American energy independence,” she said in a statement.
There was no immediate comment from the Department of Justice about the legal challenges, which were filed with attorneys general from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Delaware, and Vermont.
President Donald Trump has vowed to end federal support for offshore wind and other clean energy projects as he focuses on boosting fossil fuel production as part of broader efforts to improve the nation’s energy independence.
Trump directed the U.S. Department of Transportation in September to cancel $679 million in federal funding for a dozen infrastructure projects that would support New England Wind and other projects, saying the plans "were not aligned with the goals and priorities of the administration."
In December, the Interior Department halted federal leases for Sunrise and four other large-scale offshore wind projects under construction off New York's coastline, including the Empire Wind 1 project and Sunrise Wind. Those projects have now been allowed to resume construction following federal court rulings.
The federal agency has also pulled the plug on New Jersey's offshore wind projects and clawed back a $12.6 million federal grant for Maine to build the nation's first offshore wind turbine research project.