Now more than a year into Donald Trump’s second presidency, he’s checked an alarming number of boxes on the Project 2025 wish list. Despite his sometimes hourly flip-flopping, his overall objective is clear: He wants to centralize power in the executive branch while dismantling an imagined “deep state.”
Assuming the mantle of an all-powerful president (or king) who rules by executive order (or royal proclamation), Trump believes he can sideline or even abolish the federal agencies and rules that have long played an essential role in our democracy. And so, in pursuit of, effectively, an absolute monarchy, he’s overstepped every boundary, breached every norm, and effected an all-out assault on our fundamental rights and institutions. As quickly as he has “disappeared” people off the streets, he has also “disappeared” due process, public health, academic freedom, and scientific inquiry. He’s now trying to “disappear” our environment. We won’t let him.
We’re going to court to challenge the Trump administration’s ill-conceived and dangerous environmental policies. The situation is fluid, and every day brings new battles, but we are prepared for – and joining – the fight. Our democracy and environment depend on it.
Defending Vermont’s Climate Superfund Law
United States v. Vermont and Chamber of Commerce v. Moore
What he’s doing: Trump is trying to make life easier for the fossil fuel companies whose products are responsible for the extreme weather we’re experiencing in states like Vermont and New York. The Trump administration is suing both states to block the enforcement of new climate superfund laws that require major fossil fuel companies to pay their fair share of climate change adaptation costs. The administration’s lawsuit is in addition to one filed by the American Petroleum Institute, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and a coalition of 24 Republican-led state attorneys general.
What’s at stake: Towns, cities, states, and home- and business owners are currently on the hook for cleanup costs after floods, fires, and other extreme weather ravage neighborhoods. When the flooding recedes, many towns are still swimming in red ink. Under the newly passed laws, the largest contributors to climate change must pay to fund adaptation projects to better respond to extreme storms caused by climate change.
What we’re doing: Alongside Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, CLF has successfully intervened in both cases. Our goal is to defend the state’s Climate Superfund Act, which is modeled after the well-established “polluter pays” environmental doctrine. That doctrine underpins existing Superfund laws, which assert that polluters must pay for the cleanup of hazardous waste even if they didn’t intend to pollute. The Trump administration would like Vermont families and businesses to continue paying soaring costs to repair damage and fund adaptation projects after extreme storms caused by climate change. We want polluters to pay their fair share.
Protecting New England Waters from Oil and Gas Drilling
Northern Alaska Environmental Center, et al. v. Trump et al
What he’s doing: President Trump is opening up vulnerable ocean areas to oil and gas leasing.
What’s at stake: Opening vulnerable ocean areas to oil and gas drilling is a reckless gamble with our environment, economy, and public health. The risk? Simply that a catastrophic oil spill will devastate marine life and destroy the vital ecosystems we depend on. CLF has stood against oil and gas drilling in sensitive ocean areas, and especially on Georges Bank, since the 1970s.
What we’re doing: CLF has joined Earthjustice and partners in a lawsuit challenging this executive order. The case, Northern Alaska Environmental Center, et al. v. Trump et al., challenges President Trump’s order to revoke President Biden’s protections for the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf in the Arctic, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans, as well as the Gulf of Mexico. Biden used the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to safeguard these regions from oil and gas leasing, a power used by eight administrations, including Trump’s first. However, it does not permit a president to undo previous withdrawals, as a federal court confirmed when Trump attempted to reverse President Obama’s protections for the Arctic and Atlantic oceans.
Preserving New England Communities’ Environmental and Climate Justice Grants
Appalachian Voices v. EPA
What he’s doing: Trump is on a mission to shut down any programs that amplify the values he hates – diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice – including environmental and climate justice. He has therefore abruptly terminated the Environmental and Climate Justice Block Grant Program, which provided funding to community-based organizations and local governments to address urgent environmental and public health issues in historically underserved communities.
What’s at stake: Communities across New England were hobbled when the Trump administration suddenly canceled grants meant to address the health and climate effects of pollution and other hazards. The termination leaves many programs unable to continue the critical work to improve the lives of their constituents.
What we’re doing: CLF filed a “friend of the court” legal brief in federal court in the case of Appalachian Voices v. EPA on behalf of 17 community-based organizations and individuals whose grants were unlawfully terminated. The brief supported a motion to restore funding while litigation proceeded and laid bare the devastating impact these cuts have had on frontline communities. Though dismissed by the trial court, the case is on appeal, and CLF stands by to lend further support.
Protecting Access to Affordable Solar Energy
Rhode Island AFL-CIO v. EPA
What he’s doing: The Trump administration has illegally terminated the $7 billion Solar for All program aimed at helping low-income households and disadvantaged communities access clean and affordable solar power.
What’s at stake: The Solar for All program would have delivered residential solar projects to more than 900,000 households nationwide while creating hundreds of thousands of high-quality jobs. At the same time, it would have reduced carbon emissions by at least 30 million metric tons, equal to the emissions of over 7 million typical passenger vehicles. These solar projects would have lowered energy bills while improving air quality.
What we’re doing: CLF, along with the Southern Environmental Law Center, Lawyers for Good Government, and the Lawyers Committee for Rhode Island, filed a legal challenge in federal court on behalf of a coalition of businesses and nonprofits to reverse this shameless attempt to prop up fossil fuel companies at the expense of families.
Defending a Clean Energy Future
State of New York v. Trump
What he tried to do: President Trump doesn’t like the “windmills” we know as wind turbines, so he issued a government-wide ban on new wind energy projects.
What’s at stake: The Trump administration wants to keep us tethered to outdated, dirty, and expensive energy sources, like coal, gas, and oil. That’s because his fossil fuel friends rake in billions as the world reels from heat waves, monster storms, flash floods, and fires. If we allow the administration to crush this efficient, clean, and cheap energy source, we have also crushed any hope of reining in the pollution causing our planet to overheat.
What we did: CLF, along with nine other environmental groups, filed a “friend of the court” legal brief arguing that the court should grant the request of states and industry groups to overturn the Trump administration’s government-wide ban on new wind energy projects immediately. Wind energy already accounts for a significant portion of our electricity mix, supporting approximately 131,000 American jobs. The responsible deployment of wind power with critical protections for marine habitats and species is not only possible but also necessary if we want to enjoy clean air and water, meet our goals for cutting climate-damaging pollution, and maintain affordable and reliable electricity.
Outcome: The court sided with the states in overturning the ban, but the government has appealed. We stand ready to weigh in again as the appeal moves forward.
Ending a Federal Ban on Clean Energy Projects
Renew Northeast et al v. United States Department of the Interior et al
What he’s doing: President Trump is working feverishly to block and delay federal permitting for wind and solar energy projects, which already account for 17% of U.S. electricity generation.
What’s at stake: Electricity demand is growing, particularly with more large data centers coming online. That is creating a need for more electricity, yet the Trump administration is removing from the table the best generating sources we have — wind and solar. Without these low-cost clean energy tools, we are locked into dirty, expensive fossil fuels that keep our electricity bills high while polluting our air and damaging our climate.
What we’re doing: Eight renewable energy groups sued the Trump administration in the lawsuit Renew Northeast et al v. United States Department of the Interior et al. The suit challenges six actions that unlawfully punish wind and solar development while elevating the fossil fuel industry. CLF, along with eight other environmental groups, filed a “friend-of-the-court” brief supporting the renewable energy industry groups’ request to block the administration’s actions.
Outcome: The court sided with the renewable energy groups and issued a preliminary injunction blocking five of the six challenged federal actions from disrupting wind and solar projects. The government is likely to appeal, and CLF is ready to continue weighing in as the case moves forward.
Upholding EPA’s Duty to Regulate Carbon Pollution
American Public Health Association v. EPA
What he’s doing: Trump’s EPA rescinded the 2009 “Endangerment Finding” in which the agency found that carbon pollution poses a danger to public health and welfare.
What’s at stake: The public relies on the EPA’s authority to regulate carbon pollution. Under the Clean Air Act, the EPA is required to regulate pollutants. But by rescinding the earlier finding, the Trump EPA is attempting to eliminate its own responsibility to regulate emissions from vehicles and power plants. In the long run, this will cause more chronic disease and more climate-change-induced extreme weather.
What we’re doing: Less than a week after the administration’s pronouncement, we filed suit against the EPA, joining a broad coalition of health and environmental groups challenging the EPA’s illegal determination that it is not responsible for protecting us from pollution.
Refuting the “National Energy Emergency”
State of Washington v. Trump
What he’s doing: On day one of his presidency, Trump declared a “national energy emergency,” a shallow pretense to give his fossil fuel buddies shortened approval times for oil pipelines and drilling projects on federal lands.
What’s at stake: By fast-tracking more fossil fuel projects at a time when the country is already producing historic quantities of oil and gas, the Trump administration is locking us into a future of climate change, a degraded natural environment, and poorer health.
What we’re doing: We’ve filed a “friend of the court” brief supporting the states, the District of Columbia, and environmental nonprofits that have sued the administration. We want to both temporarily and permanently reverse all authorizations granted to existing projects and to ensure that, in the future, no further drilling and pipeline projects will be granted expedited authorizations.
Protecting Our Air from Mercury and Lead
Air Alliance Houston v. EPA
What he’s doing: The Trump administration is working overtime to make us sick. It has repealed the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards that limit brain-damaging mercury, lead, and other hazardous air pollution emissions from coal-fired power plants.
What’s at stake: Without this basic standard, more people will be exposed to toxins that hold the potential to alter their lives forever. The repeal eliminates the prior 2024 standard, which had tightened rules against toxin-emitting power plants. The 2026 final rule completely deletes these regulations.
What we’re doing: We’ve joined 22 health and environmental groups in challenging this repeal in federal court to ensure these protective standards go into effect.
Protecting Our Air from Soot
Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, et al v. Zeldin
What he’s doing: In keeping with its other actions that allow industry to defile our air freely, the Trump administration has failed to implement the National Ambient Air Quality Standards for fine particulate matter, commonly known as soot, that were strengthened in 2024. Soot is a major culprit in chronic disease.
What’s at stake: The EPA has estimated that the strengthened standard put forward under the Biden administration would prevent up to 4,500 premature deaths annually, avoid 800,000 cases of asthma symptoms and 2,000 emergency room visits, and yield up to $46 billion in net health benefits once implemented.
What we’re doing: We’re joining 16 other health, community, and environmental groups in suing the administration, and asking the court to impose a court-ordered deadline on the EPA to fulfill its overdue responsibilities to implement the standards.
Fighting to Regulate Toxic “Forever Chemicals” in Sewage Sludge
Farmer v. EPA
What he’s doing: Trump’s EPA is failing communities by refusing to protect them from PFAS – so-called “forever chemicals” – in sewage sludge.
What’s at stake: The Clean Water Act requires the EPA to identify and regulate toxic pollutants in sewage sludge, but the agency has failed to do so for PFAS. As a result, contamination has spread across millions of acres of farmland nationwide, threatening the health of both workers and consumers. PFAS is linked to numerous chronic diseases, including cancer, as well as neurological and developmental disorders.
What we’re doing: CLF and partner organizations, including the Kentucky Resources Council and Earthjustice, filed briefs on behalf of farmers and others in support of an appeal challenging the EPA’s failure to protect communities from PFAS in sewage sludge. The appeal – brought by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility – highlights the EPA’s refusal to act despite decades of contaminated sludge being spread on farmland as fertilizer across the country.
Restoring Funding to Communities Hit by Environmental Disasters
State of Washington et al v. FEMA et al
What he’s doing: Trump appointees directed FEMA to illegally cancel billions in grants that Congress had specifically allocated to prevent injuries, loss of life, and property damages caused by environmental disasters. In July of 2025, 29 states sued FEMA and won. The Court ordered that the termination be reversed and the grant money not be used for any purposes other than congressionally directed use. Despite this, FEMA has not yet awarded the grant money or made any meaningful progress in using it as courts directed – for the safety of the American public.
What’s at stake: For nearly 30 years, the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program has proactively fortified communities against disasters. Over the past four years, FEMA has selected nearly 2,000 projects nationwide to receive roughly $4.5 billion in BRIC funding. This funding has enabled local governments and various organizations to complete projects deemed necessary to ensure public safety. Trump’s illegal cancellation of the BRIC program has left hundreds of projects in peril while endangering communities across the country.
What we’re doing: In October of 2025, CLF submitted a “friend of the court” brief to the federal court supporting the 29 states attempting to have the BRIC program reinstated. The court agreed with us and, in December of 2025, ordered Trump to reverse the termination of BRIC. FEMA did not appeal this judgment, but also did not take steps to comply with the court order. In February 2026, the states filed a motion to enforce the judgment. The court once again sided with the states and ordered FEMA to act. But FEMA is still dragging its feet and illegally failing to satisfy court orders.
Defending Public Service Loan Forgiveness Rules
National Council of Nonprofits v. McMahon
What he’s doing: The Trump administration is acting unconstitutionally to punish individuals for their political activities or affiliations by issuing a new public service loan forgiveness rule that disqualifies certain employers from the program.
What’s at stake: Many people who take jobs in the public sector or work with nonprofits are able to accept lower pay because they know some of their student loans will be forgiven. When that benefit is stripped away, it has a chilling effect that reverberates across cities, states, and non-profits, ultimately harming the public good.
What we’re doing: CLF is acting as co-counsel representing itself and other environmental nonprofit groups in a “friend of the court” brief in support of the parties challenging the implementation of this rule.
Fighting Pollution Standards Rollbacks
Kentucky v. EPA
What he’s doing: The Trump administration has no intention of defending strengthened National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for fine particulate matter. It has requested that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit vacate the rules.
What’s at stake: Strengthened standards regulating fine particulate pollution are critical to protecting public health and addressing climate change. If we give up on clean air that is safe to breathe, we condemn ourselves to a future of disease and extreme weather caused by climate change.
What we’re doing: We’ve joined a coalition of states and environmental groups defending tighter standards as necessary to protect public health.
Protecting the Atlantic’s Only Marine National Monument
CLF et al. v. Trump
What he’s doing: President Trump signed a proclamation in February 2026 opening the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument to destructive commercial fishing. The monument is roughly 4,900 square miles of unique underwater geography that supports a vibrant reservoir of ocean life – and it’s the Atlantic Ocean’s first and only marine national monument.
What’s at stake: The Canyons and Seamounts is a hotspot of biodiversity, sheltering endangered whales, undiscovered deep-sea life, and cold-water corals that can take centuries to grow. Removing protections and allowing commercial fishing within the monument would cause irreparable damage to its delicate ecosystem. Federal courts have already ruled that the monument was created legally, and the president has no authority to abolish or diminish national monuments established by a prior president.
What we’re doing: CLF, alongside NRDC, the Center for Biological Diversity, and whale-watch naturalist Zack Klyver, has sued the Trump administration to block this unlawful rollback. This isn’t the first time CLF has gone to court to defend this monument – the last time Trump tried to strip away protections in 2020, we sued and kept fighting until President Biden restored them. We’re ready to do it again.
As these cases develop, check back for updates.
