Washington, D.C. — Phil Goldberg, Special Counsel for the Manufacturers’ Accountability Project, issued the following statement in response to the Connecticut attorney general filing a lawsuit against manufacturers over the impacts of climate change:

“We value General Tong’s commitment to the environment, but we should be fighting climate change instead of each other. Filing a bunch of these lawsuits is a political strategy by environmental advocates trying to scapegoat energy manufacturers when, in reality, fighting climate change is a shared global challenge that requires collaboration and innovation to overcome. These lawsuits do nothing to advance meaningful solutions and will only make oil, gas and other energy staples more expensive for Connecticut families and businesses.

“Regardless of how the lawsuits are packaged, making and selling us the energy we all need to be part of modern society is not a liability-inducing event. This is why every court to reach the substance of the allegations has dismissed them—including the U.S. Supreme Court. Just last year, a judge in New York called similar allegations ‘hyperbolic’. A patchwork of decisions from state courts cannot substitute for a national energy policy crafted by the executive and legislative branches.

“The truth is that manufacturers, including energy manufacturers, are focused on the fight against climate change every day and are investing major resources in developing ways to source and use energy more efficiently. If Connecticut and other states want to make a real difference in the fight against global climate change, they should work with manufacturers to foster the policies and innovations required to address this challenge—as the overwhelming majority of communities have done—and not join this ill-conceived litigation.”

-MAP-

The Manufacturers’ Accountability Project (MAP) will set the record straight and highlight the concerted, coordinated campaign being waged by plaintiffs’ lawyers, public officials, deep-pocketed foundations and other activists who have sought to undermine and weaken manufacturers in the United States. This campaign will pull back the curtain to expose these efforts and to hold key actors accountable in order to protect our members and American manufacturing workers. The MAP is a project of the NAM’s Manufacturers’ Center for Legal Action (MCLA), which serves as the leading voice of manufacturers in the nation’s courts. Visit us at mfgaccountabilityproject.org.