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| Dear Friend, |
| This month, we are celebrating victories for electric vehicle charging infrastructure, a public records request related to an ICE detention center, congestion pricing in New York City, and utility rules that lower energy use and cost. |
| Your donations allow us to represent our clients free of charge. Together, we are building a more just, sustainable world. Thank you for making all of this possible. |
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| $5 Billion Victory for Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure |
Last week, 17 states and a coalition of environmental groups won a lawsuit in federal court to restore $5 billion in funding for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. The Trump administration unlawfully froze funds that Congress had allocated, blocking a buildout of EV charging equipment across the U.S.
The court's decision is a complete victory for us — and because Earthjustice and other environmental groups joined the lawsuit, the order applies across all 50 states, not just the 17 that sued. Long-delayed charging projects can now move forward, which will benefit the public by making the charging network safer and more reliable.
“Today’s decision means states can build the EV charging infrastructure America needs to clean our air and keep up with the rest of the world. We’re grateful the court put a stop to the reckless chaos fomented by the Trump administration when they tried to interfere with Congress’s power of the purse,” said Jan Hasselman, senior attorney with Earthjustice. “These NEVI funds are critical for building out a brighter future across the states.”
The Sierra Club led our coalition, while Earthjustice represented Climate Solutions. |
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| Support the Next Earthjustice Victory! |
| Friend, want to be part of the next Earthjustice victory? We rely on supporters to fund the lawsuits that protect our planet's future. Donate today to help fight back against the Trump administration’s environmental attacks. |
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| Court Orders Florida to Comply with Public Records Requests on ICE Detention Center |
In January, our client Friends of the Everglades won a legal fight to obtain communications between state and federal officials about the ICE detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz.”
These records are important evidence in an ongoing lawsuit to shut down the Everglades detention center. That lawsuit hinges on whether the federal government played a role in the center’s funding. If so, then by federal law, there should have been an analysis of the project’s environmental impact. No such analysis ever took place.
New evidence produced by our public records lawsuit confirms that state and federal officials agreed as early as June, before the facility opened, that it would receive federal funding. The Department of Homeland Security issued an official “notice of award allocation” to Florida for $608.4 million in July. These facts were not disclosed to the public while agencies continued to claim in court that no funding application or decision had been made.
The facility remains in operation because a court injunction to shut it down over environmental violations was paused while state and federal agencies appeal, with the appellate hearing set for April 2026. In both lawsuits, Friends of the Everglades is represented by Earthjustice and attorney Paul Schwiep of the Coffey Burlington law firm. |
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| Congestion Pricing is Helping New York City Thrive |
One year after congestion pricing was implemented in Manhattan, the results are in: New Yorkers are enjoying cleaner air, faster commutes, safer streets, and hundreds of millions of dollars in new revenue for public transit improvement projects.
The first-in-the-nation initiative charges a $9 toll to most vehicles to enter Manhattan’s central business district below 60th Street (known as Congestion Relief Zone, or the toll zone) during peak hours. The policy has been a resounding success and stands to serve as a model for cities across the country.
But those gains haven’t come without a fight. In 2024, Earthjustice — representing Riders Alliance, Sierra Club, and the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance – successfully challenged the governor of New York’s 11th-hour effort to place an “indefinite pause” on the plan. And our attorneys are in court this week fending off the Trump administration’s legally dubious push to rescind federal approval of the project — despite metrics showing its overwhelmingly positive impact on the city.
Read more about the positive impact of congestion pricing in the feature story below. |
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| A Win for “Demand Response” in Minnesota |
In late January, the Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled in our favor, striking down a state ban that hindered programs designed to lower energy use at time of peak demand.
Demand response programs allow customers to voluntarily reduce their electricity usage in exchange for compensation. For example, a program will set up customers with smart thermostats. Then, on the hottest days of summer, the thermostat will automatically turn their AC down a few degrees, and they will receive money back. When thousands of people participate, the energy savings are huge. By reducing peak power demand, demand response enables utilities to reduce new infrastructure costs, maximize solar and wind integration, and reduce electricity bills. It’s a win, win, win.
Thus far, Earthjustice's litigation and advocacy has helped remove demand response bans in Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin, and allies have persuaded Missouri and Michigan to rescind their bans as well. As of today, only 7 states still have demand response bans. Earthjustice’s campaign will continue to reduce that number in the months and years ahead. |
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| Your contributions give us the resources to hold on to progress made through our victories and to keep fighting for a more just, sustainable world. Thank you. |
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| Photo Credits (top to bottom): Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Map (Earthjustice); Everglades immigration detention center (Daniel Torok / White House); A traffic jam on East 42nd Street in Manhattan. (Alexander Spatari / Getty Images); San Bernardino's busy rail yard in California's Inland Empire (Mike Kane/ Marguerite Casey Foundation) |
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