New York’s government has run its energy policy into the ground—crippling its own economy and driving costs through the roof. Now, instead of facing the consequences of those failures, the state is trying to export its bad decisions to places like West Virginia. And it’s claiming that it can do so by force of its own newly created state laws.
In one of the most brazen examples of state-government overreach in recent memory, New York passed the so-called “Climate Change Superfund Act”—a massive, multi-billion-dollar scheme that would punish American energy producers for providing affordable, reliable energy. This isn’t regulation. It’s a money grab—plain and simple.
The act targets energy producers, starting with the biggest multinational “majors” and then reaches past them to the small- and mid-sized energy companies across America, including members of the Gas and Oil Association of West Virginia (GO-WV), who have spent decades fueling American prosperity. West Virginia is the fourth-largest energy-producing state in the country. Its natural resources power homes, businesses, and industries from coast to coast. West Virginia is trying to unleash its immense wealth of energy to secure economic independence and strengthen the nation—but instead, New York is trying to saddle other states, like West Virginia, and the energy producers who operate there with crippling penalties for doing what it they do best: powering America.
This isn’t just an attack on one industry. It’s an attack on American energy, American workers, and American prosperity.
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Since 1977, MSLF has fought to protect private property rights, individual liberties, and economic freedom. MSLF is a nonprofit public interest legal foundation. We represent clients pro bono and receive no government funding. Make your 100% tax deductible contribution today and join the fight.
Meet GO-WV: The Backbone of Energy in West Virginia
Behind the name GO-WV stands a proud and resilient community of small businesses, engineers, rig hands, truck drivers, geologists, and families—people who work long hours in tough conditions to provide the affordable, reliable energy America depends on. These are not faceless corporations. These are your neighbors, your friends, your fellow Americans.
GO-WV was formed in 2020 by combining two of West Virginia’s historic energy associations to protect and amplify the voice of energy producers in the Mountain State. Its members handle every step of the process—from exploration to production to transportation—and they invest back into their communities through workforce education and technical training.
Their mission is simple: develop energy responsibly, build opportunity at home, and defend the freedom to innovate and grow.
What Did New York Do?
In 2024, New York’s governor signed a law with an outrageous price tag: $75 billion. That’s the cap on its new “Climate Change Superfund,” a slush fund designed to extract wealth from energy-producing states like West Virginia and the energy producers who operate there to fix its own budget mess. There’s no clear plan for how the money will be spent. There’s no serious connection between the companies being targeted and any actual wrongdoing. There are just two aims: punish the energy sector, and cash in.
What makes this law especially egregious is that it seeks to hold companies liable for conduct not just in New York, but anywhere in the world. A company that followed every regulation, operated outside New York’s borders, and never set foot in the state, could now face a retroactive penalty for producing energy that New York suddenly wants to blame for “carbon emissions.”
In other words, New York politicians want to reach across state lines, grab billions from your state, and walk away. No state is safe, nor are the energy producers in those states. Further, unless New York is stopped, other states will enact similar laws, as a few other states have already done. Who will be next? California? Colorado? Montana? North Dakota? Texas? American energy production will be crippled by states seeking to fix their budget messes.
Mountain States Legal Foundation is fighting with GO-WV. Our case, in which we have teamed up with several states, challenges New York’s unconstitutional law on multiple fronts:
- Federal Preemption (Supremacy Clause): New York is trying to dictate national energy policy—something only Congress can do. This violates the constitutional principle of federalism, and the equal sovereignty of states.
- Conflict with Federal Law: The Clean Air Act is a comprehensive federal framework that governs emissions. New York’s law directly conflicts with that law, disrupting national uniformity and undermining Congress’s intent.
- Commerce Clause Violation: New York is penalizing out-of-state companies while shielding its own. That’s discrimination against interstate commerce, and a blatant example of economic protectionism.
- Due Process Violation: The law imposes massive financial penalties retroactively—without clear standards, notice, or due process. Companies are being told they owe billions for conduct that happened decades ago, often outside of New York.
What’s at Stake?
This case is bigger than just GO-WV. It’s about protecting every energy-producing state and every energy producer in the country from politically motivated attacks and cash grabs disguised as law.
West Virginia is trying to lead America into an energy-secure future, but New York wants to slam the brakes and stifle production. If New York succeeds, it sets a dangerous precedent: that any state can reach beyond its borders, punish productive businesses, and line its pockets with billions in retroactive penalties. Today it’s West Virginia. Tomorrow it’s your state.
This case is about defending the right to produce energy, create jobs, and build prosperity without fear of weaponized “lawfare” from states that can’t manage their own affairs.
We’re drawing the line. This is a fight for justice, energy independence, and the future of American energy. New York doesn’t get to write the rules for the rest of the country—especially when those rules are just a money grab to cover its own self-inflicted failures.
Let energy-producing states power America—and tell New York to stay in its lane.
Case Timeline:
- April 28, 2025: MSLF files federal lawsuit challenging a New York law that threatens to penalize energy producers nationwide.
- October 31, 2025: MSLF files Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgment, furthering the argument that New York has overstepped its authority, and the “Climate Change Superfund Act” should be struck down as unconstitutional.
- November 7, 2025: The United States government filed a “Statement of Interest” in the case of West Virginia, et. Al. cv. Leticia James, et, Al. The government stated New York’s “Climate Change Superfund Act” reaches far beyond state borders by attempting to regulate global greenhouse gas emissions, a domain the Constitution and federal law reserve exclusively for the federal government. The Act conflicts with the federal government’s foreign policy, undermines national energy and climate objectives, and intrudes on areas governed by the Clean Air Act, which gives the Environmental Protection Agency sole authority over interstate air pollution. Allowing states to create their own climate liability laws would create chaos, disrupt the national energy market, and erode the Constitution’s system of federalism that ensures uniform national policy on interstate and international matters.
