Wyoming Republican Rep. Harriet Hageman is exploring legislation that would shield oil and gas companies from climate lawsuits filed by states and cities.
Hageman, who’s running for Senate, said during a hearing Wednesday that she wanted to target climate lawsuits and state legislation against fossil fuels, arguing they could “destroy energy affordability for consumers.”
“This is just a way for Democrat-run cities and states to find other ways to tax energy companies,” Hageman said in an interview with POLITICO’s E&E News on Thursday. “That’s what it’s about.”
The legislation could be modeled after immunity that Congress granted the gun industry in 2005. The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act shields gun manufacturers from lawsuits when their products are used during a crime.
