Environment and public lands

Energy-efficiency standards The lawsuit, brought by California's attorney general and eight other state attorneys general, challenged the Department of Energy's delay in issuing its conservation standard for ceiling fans. Read more Result: The Department of Energy reversed itself and let the standard go into effect in September 2017.

Conflicts of interest California made 32 separate requests under the Freedom of Information Act for documents related to possible conflicts of interest for then-Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, and sued when the EPA withheld the documents. Read more Result: The EPA produced the documents nine months after the lawsuit was filed. Winner: California

Taxpayer royalties for oil, coal and gas California and New Mexico sued to stop Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke from repealing Obama-era regulations on the royalties that oil, coal and gas companies pay for production on federal lands. At stake in the repeal is a portion of the $82.5 million received by California in royalties and the $470 million received by New Mexico per year. Read more Result: Case is pending

Coal leasing on public land The lawsuit challenges Interior's decision to restart coal leasing on public lands while cutting short an environmental review of the program. Read more Result: Case is pending

Energy-efficiency standards California joined with eight other states to force the Department of Energy to publish energy standards for portable air conditioners and four other products. Read more Result: In February, a federal judge ordered the Energy Department to put the standards into effect. Winner: California

Waste Prevention Rule California joined with 15 other states to force Interior to implement a rule limiting the release of methane from oil and gas operations on public and tribal lands. Read more Result: Case is pending

Ozone-reduction standards California joined with several other states to force the EPA to impose clean air standards, which EPA wanted to delay for a year. Read more Result: A federal judged ordered the standards to go into effect in April. Winner: California

Scott Pruitt California sued the EPA after the agency failed to produce the required documents detailed in a Freedom of Information Act request filed in April 2017. Read more Result: The EPA released over 24,000 pages of documents requested by another Freedom of Information Act lawsuit brought by the Sierra Club. Winner: California

Transportation fuel-efficiency standards California blocked an attempt by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to delay penalties for automakers who fail to meet fuel-efficiency standards. Read more Result: In April, a federal judge ordered the standards to be put into effect immediately. Winner: California

Greenhouse gas emissions on highways California joined seven other states to force the Federal Highway Administration to implement rules setting standards for greenhouse gas emissions on highways. Read more Result: Trump administration announced it would issue the standards a week after the lawsuit was filed. Winner: California

Fracking regulations California sued to challenge the Bureau of Land Management’s repeal of regulations governing fracking on federal and Native American tribal lands. Read more Result: Case is pending

Suspension of the Clean Water Rule California joined 10 other states to block the EPA from delaying a 2015 clean water regulation covering rivers and streams and shrinking the definition of waterways subject to the rule. The change would have heightened impact in California. Read more Result: Case is pending

Methane emmisions Filed suit along with 15 other Attorneys General against the EPA for failing to reduce methane emissions from existing oil and natural gas operations, as required under federal law. Read more Result: The suit is awaiting a ruling.

Air pollution policy repeal California sued to block the EPA from repealing the 1995 “once in, always in” rule, which requires air polluters such as oil refineries and chemical plants to take action to permanently reduce emissions. Rescinding the rule would allow polluters to game goverment regulations, the state says. Read more Result: Case is pending

National vehicle emmision standards California led a coalition of 17 states and the District of Columbia to block the EPA from scrapping the nation's single vehicle emission standard, which is set to go into effect in 2022. Read more Result: Case is pending

Pesticide safety California sued to prevent the EPA from suspending the Worker Protection Standard, which requires safety training for agricultural workers handling dangerous pesticides. Read more Result: The EPA backed down two weeks after the lawsuit was filed, announcing it would implement the standard after all. Winner: California

Air pollution from landfills California led eight other states in a lawsuit to force the EPA to enforce limits of the greenhouse gas methane at landfills under a 2016 rule. Landfills are the third-largest source of methane. Read more Result: Case is pending

Healthcare

Affordable Care Act California led a coalition of 19 states to protect cost-sharing reduction reimbursments to insurers that the Trump administration ended. Read more Result: Case is pending

Access to affordable birth control California led a court attack against a Trump administration policy allowing employers to refuse to cover birth control. Read more Result: Preliminary injunction is granted to block the Trump policy. The case is now in appeals court.

Texas, et al. California, with 15 other states, fights a Texas lawsuit that aims to invalidate the Affordable Care Act. California stepped in to defend the law after the Trump administration withdrew and claimed that the ACA is unconstitutional. Read more Result: Case is pending, but California was allowed to join the suit

Immigration and Civil Rights

Muslim travel ban California fought Trump's Muslim travel ban in several courts and at several judicial levels, including via a "friend-of-the-court" brief in support of a lawsuit by the state of Hawaii aimed at stopping the travel ban. Read more Result: The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, upheld the travel ban on June 26

Immigration enforcement practices California filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the Department of Homeland Security for details on an array of immigration enforcement practices. It sued to force DHS to provide the documents. Read more Result: Case is pending

Sanctuary jurisdictions California sued to block administration efforts to require state and local immigration enforcement as a condition of receiving federal grants for law enforcement. Read more Result: Case is pending

DACA California sued the Trump administration over its decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and obtained an injunction blocking the move. Read more Result: A federal judge granted a temporary injunction; case is pending.

The U.S.-Mexico border wall California sued to challenge construction of a border wall in San Diego and Imperial Counties. Read more Result: A judge ruled the projects can proceed. California is appealing the decision.

2020 Census California sued to challenge the Trump administration’s attempt to add a question about U.S. citizenship. Read more Result: Case is pending, though a New York federal judge has cleared that state's lawsuit to move ahead

Child separation at the U.S. border California filed suit as part of a coalition of 18 attorneys general challenging the separation of families at the U.S. border. Read more Result: A California judge ordered all families to be reunited within 30 days in response to a separate lawsuit filed by the ACLU. The states' case is pending.

Education and consumer protections

Borrower Defense Rule California filed a motion to defend the loan-forgiveness process for students defrauded by their schools after the Department of Education announced plans to overhaul the rule. The department eventually cut back forgiveness. Read more Result: Case is pending