Bill > S2338

Introduced Session

This bill would be known as the "Climate Superfund Act," and would establish that certain fossil fuel companies are liable for certain damages caused to the State and its residents by the harmful effects of climate change. The bill would also establish a program in the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to collect compensatory payments from the fossil fuel companies and distribute them, in the form of grants, to climate change adaptation and resilience projects. Specifically, the bill would apply to fossil fuel companies that fall under the definition of "responsible party" established in the bill, namely an entity or a successor in interest to an entity that was engaged in the trade or business of extracting fossil fuel or refining crude oil and is determined by the DEP to be responsible for more than one billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions between January 1, 1995 (the year on which the first United Nations Conference of Parties climate change conference was held) and the last day of the calendar year on which the bill takes effect. The bill would require the State Treasurer to prepare and submit to the Legislature, within two years of the bill's enactment, an assessment of the damages to the State and its residents that have resulted from greenhouse gas emissions since 1995. The bill would establish that each responsible party is strictly liable for the damages, and would require each responsible party to make compensatory damages to the State. In addition, responsible parties that are in a "controlled group" under certain federal laws specified in the bill (e.g. a parent corporation with one or more subsidiary corporations) would be jointly and severally liable for the damages. The DEP would then be required to calculate the proportional share of damages attributable to each responsible party, based on the proportion of total greenhouse gas emissions for which the party is responsible. The DEP would be required to collect compensatory payments from each responsible party that are equal to the party's proportional share of the damages. The bill would establish various provisions regarding the collection and payment of these compensatory payments, as enumerated in section 5 of the bill. The bill would require the DEP to deposit the compensatory payments into the "Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program Fund," established under section 6 of the bill. The DEP would also be required to develop and implement a grant program to distribute the funds collected to climate change adaptation and resilience projects. The DEP would also be permitted to use moneys in the fund to administer the Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program, which is established by the bill. The bill would require the DEP to issue annual reports on the program beginning five years after the bill's enactment. Finally, the bill would require the DEP to adopt rules and regulations to implement the bill's provisions no later than two years after the State Treasurer produces the assessment of damages required by the bill.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

John McKeon (D)*,  Raj Mukherji (D)*,  Bob Smith (D)*,  Renee Burgess (D),  Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D),  Joe Cryan (D),  Patrick Diegnan (D),  Vin Gopal (D),  Linda Greenstein (D),  Gordon Johnson (D),  Joe Lagana (D),  Angela Mcknight (D),  Teresa Ruiz (D),  Brian Stack (D),  Britnee Timberlake (D),  Shirley Turner (D),  Joe Vitale (D),  Benjie Wimberly (D),  Andrew Zwicker (D), 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee (on 01/13/2026)

Official Document