A Michael Bloomberg-backed fellowship program known for placing attorneys in state attorney general offices to spearhead climate litigation has quietly broadened its scope, sending staffers to work in state agencies that regulate the energy sector, the Washington Free Beacon has learned.
The New York University State Energy & Environmental Impact Center's fellowship—which Bloomberg's eponymous philanthropic nonprofit provided two seed grants worth $5.6 million in 2017—has long placed and paid the salaries of officials in at least 10 state attorney general offices nationwide. Over the past two years, internal emails obtained by the Free Beacon show, the program has expanded to state-level public service commissions, often-overlooked agencies that regulate utility companies and permit energy infrastructure like pipelines and power plants. The commissions also implement state renewable energy standards that force power providers to generate electricity through pricier green sources.
The center's work in attorney general offices, where Bloomberg-funded fellows have participated in litigation accusing the fossil fuel industry of causing global warming, has prompted conflict-of-interest concerns
One other key function of the commissions that has emerged in recent years is their oversight and implementation of state renewable energy standards, which are mandates that force power companies to ensure green energy sources produce a set share of local electric generation. Climate activists have lobbied for such mandates, but in places like Delaware those policies have caused dramatic consumer price hikes.
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