On Oct. 5, the Supreme Court will hear Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County. Boulder, Colorado, wants money from Suncor and Exxon Mobil because the companies produce the fuels that power modern life and, Boulder claims, contribute to a warmer climate that raises local costs for wildfire risk, flooding, and infrastructure. The county is not asking a federal agency to set emissions limits. It is asking Colorado juries to impose national climate policy through state tort law. That is the real issue before the court.I’ve spent three decades in rooms where capital is allocated and risk is priced. Energy is the foundation of every portfolio I’ve ever managed. When local governments try to rewrite national energy policy through creative tort theories, the costs don’t stay local. They show up in higher fuel prices, delayed investment, and less reliable power for the same families that those governments claim to protect. The Constitution already assigned this job to Congress and the federal government. Boulder is trying to reassign it to a state court jury.
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