Attorney General Ellison sues Trump Administration for halting development of wind energy
Wind energy provides ¼ of all electricity generated in Minnesota and ¾ of all renewable energy
May 5, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) – Attorney General Ellison today joined a coalition of 18 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit against the Trump Administration over its unlawful attempt to freeze the development of wind energy.
“We cannot leave our grandchildren and their children a planet that has been devastated by climate change, and we cannot abandon the economic opportunity that wind energy provides to our state” said Attorney General Ellison. “Current and future generations of Minnesotans are counting on us, which is why I’m filing today’s lawsuit to stop President Trump’s attempt to halt all federal approvals for wind energy projects. Wind energy supports an important workforce here, and it offers an affordable source of clean, green energy. We know it works for Minnesotans because it already supplies a significant amount of power across the nation and right here in Minnesota. Trump’s attacks on wind energy are deeply troubling and cannot be allowed to stand."
Wind energy is a homegrown source of reliable, affordable energy that supports hundreds of thousands of jobs, creates billions of dollars in economic activity and tax payments, and supplies more than 10% of the country’s electricity.
Wind energy is particularly important to Minnesota, where it provides 1/4th of all electricity generated in Minnesota and 3/4ths of all renewable energy generated in the state. Continuing to develop abundant wind-energy resources is important to all Minnesotans. Increased wind energy will help achieve Minnesota’s emissions-reduction goals and provide a robust contribution to the state’s economy—including meaningful jobs for a highly-skilled workforce.
In fact, Minnesota law already requires all energy utilities to supply carbon-free electricity to Minnesotans by the year 2040. While we’re already well on our way to achieving this goal—in 2023, Minnesota ranked eighth in the nation in wind capacity—there is still more to do.
Nevertheless, on January 20, President Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum that, among other things, indefinitely halted all federal approvals necessary for the development of offshore and onshore wind energy projects pending federal review. Pursuant to this directive, federal agencies have stopped all permitting and approval activities, and in one case, have even stopped a fully permitted project in New York that had already begun construction.
The attorneys general allege that the President’s directive harms their states’ efforts to secure reliable, diversified, and affordable sources of energy to meet their increasing demand for electricity and help reduce emissions of harmful air pollutants, meet clean energy goals, and address climate change. The directive also threatens to thwart the states’ significant investments in wind industry infrastructure, supply chains, and workforce development—investments that already total billions of dollars.
The coalition argues that the President’s directive and federal agencies’ subsequent implementation of it violate the Administrative Procedure Act and other federal laws because they, among other things, provide no reasoned explanation for categorically and indefinitely halting all wind energy development—a sudden change that reverses longstanding federal policy and is inconsistent with recent federal action propping up other forms of energy. The lawsuit also alleges that the abrupt halt on all permitting violates numerous federal statutes that prescribe specific procedures and timelines for federal permitting and approvals—procedures the Administration wholly disregarded in stopping wind-energy development altogether.
In filing this lawsuit, the attorneys general are asking the Court to declare the President’s directive illegal and prevent the Administration from taking any action to delay or prevent wind energy development.
Joining Attorney General Ellison in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Washington.
