Colorado sues over $600M in state energy funding cuts

DENVER — Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser on Tuesday joined a coalition of 13 attorneys general in suing Energy Secretary Chris Wright and other federal officials over the termination of energy and infrastructure funding.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, challenges actions by the U.S. Department of Energy, the White House Office of Management and Budget and its director Russell Vought. The states allege the administration unlawfully ended programs created and funded by Congress.

Officials said about $8 billion in awards were targeted nationwide, including more than $600 million tied to public and private projects in Colorado.

“The Trump revenge campaign continues and now includes killing billions of dollars in advanced energy projects in states, including Colorado, that didn’t vote for the president,” Weiser said. “Only Congress has the power to direct federal dollars, and the president has no power to undo congressionally mandated spending on his own.”

According to the complaint, the Energy Department issued a policy memorandum in May 2025 that subjected previously awarded projects to additional review. The states allege the process was used to justify canceling funding authorized under laws, including the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

Projects affected in Colorado include $5 million for the Colorado Energy Office to improve building infrastructure and $405 million in awards to higher education institutions for energy research.

Among the projects cited were more than $32 million for the Colorado School of Mines to develop a carbon storage hub in Pueblo, nearly $300 million to Colorado State University to reduce methane emissions from low producing oil and gas wells and $19.5 million for its Methane Emissions Technology Evaluation Center, and more than $8 million to the University of Colorado Boulder for solar cell technology research.

The lawsuit argues the administration’s actions violate the separation of powers and the federal Administrative Procedure Act. The states are asking the court to declare the funding cuts unlawful and block further interference.

Weiser is co-leading the case with California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, joined by attorneys general from Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin.