Wind turbines cover the Tehachapi Mountain Range in Tehachapi, Calif., on April 2,, 2024. On Monday, a federal judge said the Trump administration’s ban on wind energy projects was “arbitrary.” File Photo by Terry Schmitt/UPI | License Photo
A federal judge in Massachusetts overturned President Donald Trump’s decision to halt all new permits for wind energy projects.
The ruling by Judge Patti Saris of the District of Massachusetts on Monday called the ban “arbitrary and capricious and contrary to law” and said there wasn’t a good explanation for implementing it.
Trump halted all new wind energy project permits in a Jan. 20 executive order, one of more than 200 he signed that day. The order said new permitting would be put on hold until there could be a “comprehensive assessment” of wind energy’s impact on the economy and environment.
The ban led to seven offshore wind projects being paused.
A coalition of 17 states led by New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump in May, saying his ban created “an existential threat to the wind industry.”
In a post on X, James called Monday’s ruling a “big victory in our fight to keep tackling the climate crisis and protect one of our best sources of clean, reliable and affordable energy.”
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers issued a statement to CNBC saying “offshore wind projects were given unfair, preferential treatment while the rest of the energy industry was hindered by burdensome regulations.”
The Environmental Defense Fund, which supported the attorneys general who brought the lawsuit, said wind energy provides more than 10% of power in the United States and employs more than 130,000 people.
“Striking down this unlawful ban gives relief to the communities and workers who need affordable power, local investment and jobs from wind projects that have been stuck in limbo,” said Ted Kelly, director and lead counsel of U.S. Clean Energy at the EDF.
This week in Washington
Attorney General Pam Bondi (C), FBI Director Kash Patel (R), U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro and others hold a press conference at the Department of Justice Headquarters on Thursday. The FBI arrested Brian Cole of Virginia, who is believed to be responsible for placing pipe bombs outside the Republican and Democratic party headquarters the night before the January 6, 2021, insurrection. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
