U.S. Chamber Secures Victory Against New York’s Retroactive Liability Law

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today secured a victory in a federal lawsuit that challenged the constitutionality of New York's retroactive liability law. Neil Bradley, Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, issued the following statement today on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York's decision to grant summary judgment in favor of the Chamber in Chamber v. James:

"We are pleased that the court granted summary judgment for the Chamber. The court soundly rejected New York's retroactive liability law that sought to punish a small number of American energy producers for global climate change. The court today sent a clear message: New York cannot extract billions of dollars from energy companies for their lawful operations over the past 25 years.

"As the court held today, these are uniquely federal concerns, and the federal government has the sole authority to regulate greenhouse gases, preempting state law.
"This is a victory not only for the American energy companies targeted by New York, but for all of business. The court has sent a strong message to states: the Constitution does not allow you to fill your budget holes by punishing businesses for lawful conduct."

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