States sue Trump administration over offshore wind deal
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Seven northeast states sued the Trump administration on Tuesday over its payment of $795 million to TotalEnergies to give up a wind lease in a coastal region off New York and New Jersey.
Why it matters: The deal with the French energy giant is among the White House's most aggressive moves targeting offshore wind development.
Driving the news: New York State Attorney General Letitia James and six other Democratic attorneys general allege in the complaint that the March agreement violates the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act on several fronts.
- "Interior Defendants ... did not hold a hearing before cancelling the Lease or make the necessary determination that cancellation was required by national security or defense," it states.
It also alleges the deal runs afoul of the Judgment Fund Act, noting it is "not the result of a compromise settlement between adverse parties, but rather an agreement resulting from Interior Defendants' pretextual national security concerns."
- And the complaint also accuses Interior of violations of the Administrative Procedure Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.
State of play: James filed the case in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia alongside AGs from Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
Catch up quick: In March, Interior announced the repayment of $795 million for the undeveloped lease TotalEnergies obtained in 2022, and $133 million for a separate tract off the Carolinas.
- TotalEnergies agreed to redirect the money into U.S. oil and gas investments.
- But the New York Times reports that it's "unclear whether the company will build new projects that it had not already outlined before the deal."
- Interior — which calls offshore wind expensive and unreliable — has since reached similar agreements with two other offshore wind companies.
Friction point: "We are fighting back to stop this illegal agreement that threatens to erase over a thousand union jobs and cheat millions of New Yorkers out of clean, affordable energy," James said in a statement.
The other side: Interior officials have alleged that offshore wind creates national security concerns, including potential radar interference.
- But developers emphasize that any risks are well addressed in the permitting process, and administration critics call it a pretext for attacking an energy source that President Trump opposes.
- The department has sought to halt a series of Atlantic Coast projects from other developers that are much further along, but those efforts have been largely blocked in court to date.
- Interior did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
