Twenty-two young Americans, ranging in age from seven to 25, have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, accusing it of unlawfully prioritizing fossil fuels over renewable energy. The suit claims that a series of executive orders issued by former President Donald Trump are endangering their constitutional rights to life, health, and safety.
Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana, Lighthiser v. Trump alleges that these executive orders represent an overreach of presidential power and a violation of congressional mandates meant to protect public health and the environment.
🚨 Youth from Montana and four other states are suing the Trump administration for violating their constitutional rights with executive orders that fast-track fossil fuel projects, worsen the climate crisis, and suppress climate science. PR: bit.ly/youthsuetrump-pr #YouthvGov
— Our Children’s Trust (@youthvgov.bsky.social) May 29, 2025 at 7:41 PM
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“These fossil fuel orders are a death sentence for my generation,” said Eva Lighthiser, one of the plaintiffs, in a statement released by Our Children’s Trust, a nonprofit public interest law firm representing the youth. “I’m not suing because I want to — I’m suing because I have to. My health, my future, and my right to speak the truth are all on the line. He’s waging war on us with fossil fuels as his weapon, and we’re fighting back with the Constitution.”
The plaintiffs come from across the country, including states like Hawai’i, Montana, Oregon, Florida, and California. They argue that executive directives like “Unleash American Energy” and the declaration of a “National Energy Emergency” are accelerating the climate crisis. The lawsuit claims these actions are worsening environmental harms, particularly for young people, by increasing reliance on gas, oil, and coal instead of renewable sources like wind and solar.
According to the complaint, the administration’s actions have had direct impacts. For example, Montana’s Colstrip coal-fired power plant, identified by the EPA as the largest emitter of fine particulate matter in the U.S., received pollution rule exemptions under one of the challenged executive orders. Several of the plaintiffs live near this plant, its supplying coal mine, or the routes used to transport coal.
Lighthiser described the experience of living near the coal transport line as unsettling. “The coal cars are brimming with coal that just blows dust out all over my town,” she told The Guardian. “That could affect my own body and my own health, and it feels very intimidating, because it’s not something that feels like it’s in my control right now.”
The plaintiffs argue they are already facing the consequences of global heating through intensified droughts, wildfires, and hurricanes. Their legal team claims that instead of following scientific guidance and working to curb emissions, the administration not only favored fossil fuels but also actively removed climate change research and data, limiting young people’s access to the tools needed to confront the crisis.
“From day one, President Donald Trump and his administration have imposed their denial of well-established climate science on governmental and private institutions at the cost of young people’s lives,” Our Children’s Trust stated.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs ask the court to protect their rights under the U.S. and state constitutions by declaring the executive orders unconstitutional and preventing their implementation.
“Children are especially vulnerable to the consequences of climate change,” the organization added, noting impacts on both physical and mental health, as well as disruptions to cultural and economic stability.
Julia Olson, founder of Our Children’s Trust, believes the case stands on solid legal ground by focusing on basic constitutional protections. She said the act of filing the lawsuit is a victory in itself.
“Having young people rise up at a time when democracy is threatened and when there’s retaliation against so many people in this country for standing up against the administration — that is success,” Olson said.
