An aerial view of Waterbury, Vermont's flooding during the intense rainstorm of Summer 2023. Houses are submerged up to their doorsteps. Photo: Vince Franke
August 22, 2025 (Montpelier, VT) – Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) and Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) are asking a federal court to dismiss lawsuits that attempt to overturn Vermont’s groundbreaking Climate Superfund Act. The United States, the American Petroleum Institute, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and a coalition of twenty-four Republican-led states’ attorneys general are challenging the law that protects the wallets of Vermont families and businesses who are on the hook to pay soaring costs to repair damage and fund adaptation projects after extreme storms caused by climate change.
“Let’s be clear: this law is not a sweeping effort to regulate global greenhouse gas emissions, punish fossil fuel companies, or set federal policy on climate change,” said Kate Sinding Daly, senior vice president for law and policy at CLF. “This is Vermont using its legal right to raise revenue and protect the health, safety, and well-being of its residents from the ruinous, inescapable consequences of climate change. The court should throw this lawsuit out and let Vermont move forward with the serious work of defending its people and its future.”
“Our community has been enormously impacted by the climate crisis. This law helps Vermonters deal with the fallout by funding critical climate adaptation projects, and we are committed to defending this law that will help so many of our farmers and community members navigate these extreme challenges,” said Grace Oedel, NOFA-VT’s Executive Director.
Passed in May 2024, the law requires the largest fossil fuel companies to pay for a share of climate change adaptation costs attributable to their products and activities from 1995-2024.
CLF is co-represented by its own legal counsel and attorneys at the Natural Resources Defense Council. NOFA-VT is represented by attorneys from the Natural Resources Defense Council and Stris & Maher LLP.
The motion to dismiss can be found here.
Experts are available for further comment.
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