Federal Court Blocks New York's $75 Billion Climate Superfund Act

Highlights

• A federal court has held that the state of New York's Climate Change Superfund Act (the Act) is preempted, blocking a statutory program that would authorize recovery from covered fossil fuel companies of a combined $75 billion ($3 billion annually over 25 years) to fund climate adaptation projects in New York.
• The court concluded that the Act's strict liability cost-recovery scheme was materially indistinguishable from the state law climate claims the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected in City of New York v. Chevron Corp. and that the Clean Air Act does not authorize New York to impose that liability for interstate greenhouse gas emissions.
• New York is reviewing possible next steps and will likely appeal the decision, and the U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County on October 5, 2026, regarding the federal preemption framework and future climate litigation.