Attorney General Charity Clark, along with attorneys general from 16 other states, has filed an amended complaint in the ongoing lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order declaring a “national energy emergency.” The legal action now includes the United States Department of the Interior as a defendant. The coalition alleges that the department unlawfully bypassed requirements under federal laws such as the National Environmental Protection Act and Endangered Species Act when permitting fossil fuel and other energy projects.
The original lawsuit was filed last May by this multistate group to contest both the executive order and actions taken by agencies like the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. The suit claims that despite national energy production reaching record levels during President Biden’s administration and continuing to grow, President Trump invoked authority under the National Emergencies Act without justification to declare a national energy emergency.
According to Attorney General Clark’s office, “Despite there being no energy emergency, pursuant to the Executive Order, the Department of Interior asserts the existence of an energy emergency to fast-track fossil fuel projects while simultaneously blocking the development of cost-effective wind and solar energy projects.” As a result, Clark and her colleagues have expanded their legal challenge to include actions by the Department of Interior.
On January 20th, 2025—President Trump’s first day back in office—the executive order was issued under the National Emergencies Act. It directed federal agencies such as the Corps to accelerate permitting for certain projects under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), which governs permits for discharging materials into navigable waters for infrastructure or resource development. Following this directive, agencies implemented “special emergency permit processing procedures” that bypassed standard review processes designed to protect environmental and historic resources.
Historically, these types of emergency procedures were used only during genuine crises like hurricanes or major oil spills such as Deepwater Horizon in 2010. Now, according to critics including Attorney General Clark’s coalition, they are being used solely because of an administrative declaration rather than an actual emergency.
The amended complaint contends that these expedited processes violate not only environmental protection statutes but also procedural safeguards established by federal law.
Joining Vermont in this legal effort are attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin.
A copy of the amended complaint is available on Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark’s website.
