The Trump administration’s Justice Department took action Monday to halt a nearly six-year-old legal case where Minnesota state officials accused major oil corporations and a petroleum industry group of misleading residents about climate change impacts.
Federal attorneys submitted court documents in Minneapolis federal court contending that greenhouse gas emission regulation falls under federal jurisdiction rather than state authority, and accused Minnesota of attempting to wrongfully extend its policy decisions nationwide.
“The Constitution does not tolerate such a conflict,” Justice Department attorneys argued in the filing. “Nor does it allow Minnesota to national its regulatory powers.”
Democratic Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison initiated the state court case in June 2020, targeting ExxonMobil, Koch Industries, the American Petroleum Institute, and Flint Hills Resources (a Koch subsidiary) for alleged consumer fraud and misleading business practices. More than 15 additional states have pursued comparable legal actions, including Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island.
Ellison released a statement Monday dismissing the Justice Department’s intervention as without merit.
“The American people deserve a Department of Justice that fights for us, and it’s a tremendous shame that Trump’s DOJ would rather sell us out to Big Oil,” Ellison said.
The Associated Press attempted to reach media representatives from ExxonMobil, Koch Industries and the American Petroleum Institute Monday but received no immediate responses. When Ellison filed suit in 2020, ExxonMobil representatives called the case groundless. The American Petroleum Institute stated at that time that the energy sector delivers dependable power to American consumers while significantly reducing environmental impact.
Trump has advocated for expanding domestic energy output. In February, the administration eliminated a scientific determination that has long served as the foundation for U.S. greenhouse gas regulation and climate action efforts, representing the Republican president’s most forceful attempt to dismantle climate policies. The Environmental Protection Agency rule eliminated a 2009 government finding called the endangerment determination that concluded carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases pose threats to public health and safety.
The Justice Department’s court filing represents another source of tension between the Trump administration and Minnesota leadership. Relations have been strained since January, when federal immigration agents fatally shot two Minneapolis residents in separate incidents during an enforcement operation in the city. Federal authorities conducted multiple searches in April related to an investigation of publicly funded children’s programs, further intensifying conflicts.
