A federal appeals court on Tuesday overturned a ruling by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, siding with the Trump administration in blocking billions of dollars in Biden-era climate grants.
Chutkan, an Obama appointee, had earlier issued an injunction preventing former Rep. Lee Zeldin and the EPA from reclaiming $20 billion under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), which had been frozen at Citibank for eight nonprofit groups.
According to the Associated Press, those groups included the Coalition for Green Capital, Climate United Fund, Power Forward Communities, Opportunity Finance Network, Inclusiv, and the Justice Climate Fund.
Judge Tanya Chutkan had ordered $20 billion frozen at Citibank to be released to eight nonprofits by Thursday, but the Trump administration quickly appealed. On Tuesday, a three-judge panel ruled 2-1 in favor of Trump’s EPA, blocking the disbursement.
Judge Naomi Rao, writing for the majority, chastised Chutkan, an Obama appointee, over her reasoning for issuing her injunction.
“We conclude the district court abused its discretion in issuing the injunction. The grantees are not likely to succeed on the merits because their claims are essentially contractual, and therefore jurisdiction lies exclusively in the Court of Federal Claims,” Rao wrote.
“And while the district court had jurisdiction over the grantees’ constitutional claim, that claim is meritless. Moreover, the equities strongly favor the government, which on behalf of the public must ensure the proper oversight and management of this multi-billion-dollar fund. Accordingly, we vacate the injunction,” Rao added.
Zeldin canceled the grants after a Project Veritas undercover video showed EPA adviser Brent Efron admitting the agency had rushed to allocate billions to climate initiatives as an “insurance policy” ahead of President Trump’s inauguration.