{"id":13399,"date":"2021-06-24T12:32:09","date_gmt":"2021-06-24T16:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.indianz.com\/News\/?p=13399"},"modified":"2021-06-24T12:32:10","modified_gmt":"2021-06-24T16:32:10","slug":"montana-free-press-republican-state-officials-take-aim-at-youth-climate-lawsuit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/06\/24\/montana-free-press-republican-state-officials-take-aim-at-youth-climate-lawsuit\/","title":{"rendered":"Montana Free Press: Republican state officials take aim at youth climate lawsuit"},"content":{"rendered":"<a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/06\/24\/montana-free-press-republican-state-officials-take-aim-at-youth-climate-lawsuit\/jaimebutler\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-13403\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1829\" data-attachment-id=\"13403\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/06\/24\/montana-free-press-republican-state-officials-take-aim-at-youth-climate-lawsuit\/jaimebutler\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/jaimebutler-scaled.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2560,1829\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-title=\"Jaime Lynn Butler\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Navajo Nation citizen &lt;a href=https:\/\/www.ourclimatevoices.org\/2019\/jaimebutler&gt;Jaime Lynn Butler&lt;\/a&gt; is one of the plaintiffs in Juliana v. United States, in which young Americans are seeking to hold the U.S. government accountable for climate change. Photo: &lt;a href=https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/amw_photos\/26554737046\/&gt;-amw&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/jaimebutler-1024x731.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/jaimebutler-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Jaime Butler\"   class=\"size-full wp-image-13403\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"figure-caption\"> Navajo Nation citizen <a href=https:\/\/www.ourclimatevoices.org\/2019\/jaimebutler>Jaime Lynn Butler<\/a> is one of the plaintiffs in Juliana v. United States, in which young Americans are seeking to hold the U.S. government accountable for climate change. Photo: <a href=https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/amw_photos\/26554737046\/>-amw<\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n<div class=\"h3-responsive font-weight-bold\">Montana and 16 other states want in on Youth Climate Change lawsuit<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"h5-responsive sub\"><\/div>The states have petitioned a federal district court judge for a seat at the table when youth activists and the U.S. Department of Justice start settlement talks later this month.\r\n<div class=\"date\">Thursday, June 24, 2021<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"byline\">By Amanda Eggert<\/div>\r\n<DIV class=\"source\">Montana Free Press<\/DIV>\r\n<DIV class=\"source-website\"><A \r\nhref=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/\">montanafreepress.org<\/A><\/DIV>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\nMontana and 16 other states are asking to intervene in the <a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2019\/06\/07\/cronkite-news-native-youth-aim-to-hold-u.asp\">Youth Climate Change lawsuit<\/a>, an attempt by 21 youth activists to address climate change by compelling the federal government to transition away from fossil fuels.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nIn a brief filed last week, the states argue they\u2019ll be impacted by a settlement discussion between the plaintiffs and the federal government scheduled for later this month, and say they don\u2019t trust President Joe Biden\u2019s Department of Justice to represent states\u2019 interests.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n<a href=https:\/\/www.ourchildrenstrust.org\/juliana-v-us><em>Juliana v. United States<\/em><\/a> was first filed six years ago<strong> <\/strong>on behalf of young climate activists who petitioned<strong> <\/strong>the federal government to phase out fossil fuel emissions and draw down atmospheric carbon dioxide. <p><\/p>\r\n<div style=\"padding:56.25% 0 0 0;position:relative;\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/36159471?color=b0b4b5&#038;portrait=0\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><script src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/api\/player.js\"><\/script>\r\n<figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">\r\n  TRUST Arizona: <a href=https:\/\/vimeo.com\/36159471>Jaime  Lynn Butler<\/a>\r\n<\/figcaption>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nIn January 2020, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals <a href=\"https:\/\/kval.com\/news\/local\/climate-lawsuit-brought-by-eugene-youth-others-dismissed-by-9th-circuit-court-of-appeals\">sided with the government<\/a> on one of the lawsuit\u2019s key claims, concluding that the remedy plaintiffs want requires complex policy decisions better handled by elected officials and voters than by the judicial branch. In response, the plaintiffs, now age 13 to 24, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.documentcloud.org\/documents\/20508750-doc_462_motion_for_leave_to_amend\">amended the complaint<\/a> to focus on declaratory relief \u2014 recognition that their rights have been harmed without naming specific remedies for those harms.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nThe case is back before the U.S. District Court of Oregon in Eugene. Ann Aiken, the judge assigned to the case, recently directed the plaintiffs and the government to participate in a settlement conference, a first for the case. <p><\/p>\r\n\r\nThe states seeking to intervene argue that they have a stake in the country\u2019s energy future, and that a settlement granting the plaintiffs\u2019 demands would lead to higher energy prices for the states and their citizens. <p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cEach of the States has a stake in this country\u2019s energy policy, and accordingly, an interest in any potential settlement of Plaintiffs\u2019 astonishingly broad claims. As far as the States can tell, because Plaintiffs seek \u2018a fundamental transformation of this country\u2019s energy system\u2019\u2026 any or all pieces of that system might be on the bargaining table,\u201d the petition reads.<p><\/p>\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/06\/24\/montana-free-press-republican-state-officials-take-aim-at-youth-climate-lawsuit\/journeyzephier\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-13407\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" data-attachment-id=\"13407\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/06\/24\/montana-free-press-republican-state-officials-take-aim-at-youth-climate-lawsuit\/journeyzephier\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/journeyzephier-scaled.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2560,1709\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-title=\"Journey Zephier\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Journey Zephier, a citizen of the Yankton Sioux Nation, is one of the plaintiffs in the Juliana v. United States climate change lawsuit. Photo: &lt;a href=https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/amw_photos\/25975890094\/&gt;-amw&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/journeyzephier-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/journeyzephier-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Journey Zephier\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13407\" \/><\/a> <figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">Journey Zephier, a citizen of the Yankton Sioux Nation, is one of the plaintiffs in the Juliana v. United States climate change lawsuit. Photo: <a href=https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/amw_photos\/25975890094\/>-amw<\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\nThey also say that the Biden administration\u2019s climate agenda has already cost some of the states jobs in the energy sector, pointing to Biden\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/01\/21\/biden-rescinds-keystone-xl-permit\/\">revocation of the Keystone XL cross-border permit<\/a> as an example.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cThis behavior is itself deeply concerning, but coupled with the government\u2019s recent appetite for collusive litigation maneuvers, the States reasonably fear they may be robbed of the right to voice their concerns and protect themselves and their citizens,\u201d the petition argues.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nJulia Olson, chief legal counsel for Our Children\u2019s Trust, the public interest law firm representing the activists, said the attorneys general have that wrong. She said the federal government has consistently acted in opposition to the plaintiffs\u2019 interests, and that the U.S. Department of Justice under the Biden administration has been no different.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cThe procedural history of this case is highly unusual in that the government has taken really unusual steps to try to stop this case from going to trial,\u201d Olson said \u201cThey\u2019ve tried to stop the case at every turn. \u2026 It is just flatly untrue that the Biden administration has colluded with us in any way. In fact, they haven\u2019t even talked to us.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n<div class=\"mt-1 mb-1\"><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8411603009680747\" data-ad-slot=\"6394965691\"><\/ins><script>(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script><\/div><p><\/p>\r\nOlson said she sees the petition as a \u201cpolitical agenda item\u201d pushed by the Republican Attorneys General Association. <p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cI think the point is, they see that this case is important and meaningful and powerful and they don\u2019t like it, so they want to step in and try to fight these youth the way the federal government has for six years. They wouldn\u2019t be [here] if they didn\u2019t think the case was going somewhere,\u201d Olson said. <p><\/p>\r\n\r\nA spokesperson for the Montana Attorney General\u2019s office hinted at the state Department of Justice\u2019s suspicion of the federal government\u2019s aims in an email to Montana Free Press about the petition. <p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cThe Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals remanded the case to the district court with explicit instructions to dismiss. It noted the plaintiff\u2019s demands would result in \u2018no less than a fundamental transformation of this country\u2019s energy system, if not that of the industrialized world.\u2019 Despite the federal government having already won the case, the district court in Oregon ordered the Biden administration to have a settlement conference with the plaintiffs.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201cThe administration\u2019s actions on the Keystone XL pipeline and the <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/01\/27\/biden-halts-new-oil-and-gas-leases-on-federal-lands\/\">energy leasing moratorium<\/a> show that President Biden has no regard for Montana communities and is hostile toward American energy development. Attorney General Knudsen is seeking to intervene and prevent the administration from making a backroom deal to radically alter our nation\u2019s energy policy and further harm Montana communities.\u201d<p><\/p>\r\n\r\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"300\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"no\" allow=\"autoplay\" src=\"https:\/\/w.soundcloud.com\/player\/?url=https%3A\/\/api.soundcloud.com\/tracks\/633332046&#038;color=%23ff5500&#038;auto_play=false&#038;hide_related=true&#038;show_comments=false&#038;show_user=false&#038;show_reposts=false&#038;show_teaser=false&#038;visual=true\"><\/iframe>\r\n<figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">\r\n Indianz.Com on SoundCloud: <a href=https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/indianz\/juliana-v-us>9th Circuit Court of Appeals &#8211; Juliana v. US &#8211; June 4, 2019<\/a>\r\n<\/figcaption>\r\n<P><\/P>\r\nOlson said the <a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/18-36082.pdf\">9th Circuit\u2019s January 2020 ruling<\/a> directing the district court to dismiss the case is not the end of the line for the Juliana lawsuit, and said it\u2019s not unusual for a party to amend its complaint as the plaintiffs have done. <p><\/p>\r\n\r\n\u201c[The states are] trying to make it seem like this is so unusual and the district court isn\u2019t following directions, and that\u2019s ridiculous \u2014 this happens all the time in cases,\u201d she said.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nThe 16 other states seeking to intervene in the case are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.<p><\/p>\r\n\r\nThey\u2019ve asked Aiken to issue a ruling on their request by June 22, the day prior to the scheduled settlement conference.<p><\/p>\r\n<HR><EM>Billings native Amanda Eggert covers environmental issues for MTFP. Amanda is a graduate of the University of Montana School of Journalism who has written for Outside magazine and Outlaw Partners. At Outlaw Partners she led coverage for the biweekly newspaper <a href=\"https:\/\/www.explorebigsky.com\/\">Explore Big Sky<\/a>. Contact Amanda at aeggert@montanafreepress.org.<\/em><HR>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\n<strong>Note: This story originally <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2021\/06\/15\/montana-petitions-join-youth-climate-change-lawsuit\/\">appeared on Montana Free Press<\/a>. It is published under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/3.0\/us\/\">Creative Commons license<\/a>.<\/strong>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Native youth are part of a lawsuit that seeks to hold the federal government accountable for climate change.","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13403,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[11,13,1,14],"tags":[468,283,362,284,53,72,707,249,194,85,102],"class_list":["post-13399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-environment","category-law","category-national","category-politics","tag-9th-circuit","tag-climate-change","tag-doj","tag-energy","tag-joe-biden","tag-judiciary","tag-keystone-xl-pipeline","tag-montana","tag-montana-free-press","tag-republicans","tag-youth","no-wpautop"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcoJ7g-3u7","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/24\/jaimebutler-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13399"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13399\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}