Scalise, GOP lawmakers call Boulder County climate suit a ‘war on American energy’
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
FIRST ON FOX: More than 70 lawmakers are lining up against Colorado’s effort to hold major oil companies financially responsible for alleged climate change damages.
House Republicans, led by House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), are urging the Supreme Court to side with ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy in a hotly contested climate change case that they argue amounts to a costly “war on American energy.”
GOP lawmakers called Boulder County’s lawsuit a “dangerous overreach” that could leave major fossil fuel companies on the hook for billions of dollars in alleged damages. They warn that a positive ruling for the Liberal district would encourage more lawsuits that could threaten the financial sustainability of the fossil fuel industry.
“Radical activists are attempting to use the courts to accomplish what they have failed to achieve through legislation; pushing their radical agenda on the American people, driving energy costs even higher,” Scalise said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital. he said. “These lawsuits will give local activist politicians the power to set national energy policy and threaten the energy producers that power our economy.”
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, joined by House Majority Leader Tom Emmer and House Speaker Mike Johnson, holds a press conference following a meeting of the House Republican Conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, on January 13, 2026. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
EXPERTS WARNING OF THE BIGGEST SCANDAL IN THE LITIGATION SYSTEM IF SCOTUS DOES NOT PURSE NIX LANDMARK ENERGY POLLUTION CASE
Lawyers with the law firm Boyden Gray filed an amicus brief, or “friend of the court,” on behalf of congressional Republicans.
The court is expected to hear oral arguments this fall in Suncor v. Boulder on whether federal law bars localities from seeking compensation for alleged climate damages in state courts. A decision is expected in 2027.
Despite longstanding questions about whether localities can seek compensation for cross-border and global greenhouse gas emissions, the case has reached the nation’s highest court after the Colorado Supreme Court allowed the years-long case to proceed under state law. Boulder first filed a lawsuit against major oil companies in 2018, claiming that they knowingly contributed to global warming and misled the public about their claims of harming the climate.
The Republicans’ amicus brief argues that liability claims are subject to federal jurisdiction because allowing state courts to decide global climate damages would lead to a “cacophony of competing state mandates” that undermines Congress’s role in setting national energy policy.
“The Court should reject this attempt by Defendants to establish ‘their own foreign policy’ from the Boulder courthouse,” the brief reads.
House Republicans argue Boulder County’s lawsuit against ExxonMobil and Suncor Energy amounts to a “war on American energy.” (Justin Hamel/Bloomberg)
NY HOUSE GOP LAUNCHES PRESSURE CAMPAIGN ON HOCHUL TO ENROLL THE CLIMATE ACT DUE TO RISING ENERGY COSTS.
The signatories also warned that a ruling in favor of Boulder County could lead to devastating economic losses for U.S. energy producers.
“The magnitude of the alleged damages could restructure the American energy industry, if not outright bankrupt it, and cause ripple effects around the world, especially when multiplied by dozens of similar cases across the country,” the summary continues.
The legal fight has also spilled over into Colorado politics; Republicans argue that climate-related lawsuits championed by Democrats threaten jobs and increase energy costs.
Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Colo., a freshman lawmaker who represents a swing district near the city of Boulder, made the lawsuit as part of Democrats’ efforts to make energy production unaffordable.
“These lawsuits and regulations are not just attacks on oil and gas companies; they are attacks on Colorado jobs, America’s energy independence, and every family already struggling with high costs,” Evans, who signed the statement, told Fox News Digital. “I will continue to fight to protect energy workers in Colorado and implement the full energy strategy our nation needs.”
Rep. Gabe Evans at Fort St. Paul in Platteville, Colo., on March 9, 2026. Vrain speaks at a press conference at the Generating Station. (Chet Strange/Bloomberg)
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION
Republicans’ emphasis on affordability comes as the party grapples with voter disappointment over higher-than-usual gas prices tied to the conflict with Iran.
Nearly 90 percent of voters called rising gas prices a “problem.” According to Fox News Poll It was published in May.
