New York, California sue Trump over canceled offshore wind projects

Democratic attorneys general from California and New York sued the Trump administration Tuesday over its plans to buy back offshore wind leases as President Donald Trump seeks to discourage the expansion of wind energy in favor of fossil fuels. California Attorney General Rob Bonta and New York Attorney General Letitia James called the deals illegal and said Americans' electric bills would go up as a result.

Bonta said he is suing over the Trump administration’s decision to end an offshore wind lease held by Chicago-based Invenergy off the California coast.

In June, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced a settlement with Invenergy under which the company would voluntarily terminate four offshore wind leases on the East and West coasts. The leases are located in the New York Bight, off California’s Central Coast, and in the Gulf of Maine. The agreements involve a total of $765 million, which the Interior Department says Invenergy would redirect toward other domestic energy projects, including natural gas and geothermal projects.

One of those leases is Invenergy’s lease in the Morro Bay Wind Energy Area off Central California. Bonta said the federal government is effectively using more than $111 million in taxpayer funds to pay Invenergy to give up the lease. Invenergy originally paid more than $111 million for the lease in 2022.

What did the lawsuit allege? In its notice of intent to sue, California argued that the Interior Department’s agreement with Invenergy violates the Constitution and federal law. The state also argued that canceling the lease undermines California’s efforts to develop offshore wind energy. California also objected to the requirement that Invenergy make an equivalent investment in fossil-fuel or geothermal projects.

What did the Trump administration say? Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum said that the offshore wind leases were sold under the assumptions that taxpayers would indefinitely subsidize costly, unreliable projects. Under President Trump, companies are shifting investment back toward dependable, secure energy infrastructure like natural gas, Burgum said. He said that these fossil fuels power the economy on lower utility costs to consumers. Department of Justice Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said that by ending the offshore wind leases and turning to natural gas energy, Invenergy is helping revitalize American energy.