An Act providing for a judicial forum for claims for damages stemming from climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to climate change and harms resulting from long-term changes to the climate system.

PRINTER'S NO. 2421
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 1931
Session of
2025
INTRODUCED BY WEBSTER, HOWARD, HILL-EVANS, PROBST, SANCHEZ,
K.HARRIS AND GREEN, OCTOBER 7, 2025
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, OCTOBER 8, 2025
AN ACT
Providing for a judicial forum for claims for damages stemming
from climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to
climate change and harms resulting from long-term changes to
the climate system.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Extreme
Weather Recovery Act.
Section 2. Legislative intent.
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) The General Assembly finds that responsible parties
shall be accountable to harmed parties.
(2) The General Assembly explicitly authorizes a right
of action to harmed parties, including individuals,
businesses and associations.
(3) The Commonwealth has a sovereign and compelling
interest in providing a forum for individuals, businesses and
associations sustaining injuries and harms caused by
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responsible parties' deceptive behavior and linked to the
harms of responsible parties' products and actions.
(4) It is the intent of the General Assembly to provide
a judicial forum for the efficient, just and equitable
resolution of harmed parties' claims for damages stemming
from climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to
climate change and harms resulting from long-term changes to
the climate system against responsible parties.
Section 3. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Amount in controversy." The damages claimed or relief
demanded by the injured party or parties in a lawsuit.
"Climate disaster." An event that meets any of the following
threshold qualifications and is determined by impact attribution
science or extreme event attribution science to be substantially
worsened or caused by climate change from responsible parties'
products or extreme weather attributable to climate change from
responsible parties' products:
(1) A major disaster as defined by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency Glossary in July 2024.
(2) A catastrophic incident as defined by the Federal
Emergency Management Agency Glossary in July 2024, not
including events linked to terrorism.
(3) An event that does qualify, or would have qualified,
for inclusion on the National Centers for Environmental
Information's Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters
program and data list as it existed in July 2024.
(4) A state of emergency or disaster declaration as
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defined in 35 Pa.C.S. § 7301(c) (relating to general
authority of Governor).
"Covered period." The period from 1965 to the effective date
of this section.
"Extreme event attribution science." Research aimed at
understanding how human-induced changes in the global climate
system affect the probability, severity and other
characteristics of extreme weather events such as hurricanes and
heat waves.
"Extreme weather attributable to climate change." Weather,
climate or environmental conditions, including temperature,
precipitation, drought or flooding that are consistent with
impacts or events that are attributable to climate change and
where the intensity, magnitude, location, timing or extent of
the event lie outside the historical distribution of
measurements for that type of event or impact for a particular
place and time of year. The term includes events that extreme
event attribution science determines were made more likely or
severe by climate change.
"Gross negligence." Negligence which is materially greater
than the mere absence of reasonable care under the circumstances
and which is characterized by indifference to or reckless
disregard of the rights of others.
"Harmed parties." A person, business or association harmed
or suffering damages in the amount of at least $10,000 as a
result of a climate disaster or extreme weather attributable to
climate change.
"Impact attribution science." Research aimed at
understanding how global climate change affects human and
natural systems, including localized physical impacts, such as
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floods, droughts and sea level rise, and the corresponding
effects on infrastructure, public health, ecosystems,
agriculture and economies.
"Long-term changes to the climate system." The following:
(1) Increases in average temperature.
(2) Disruptions to ocean chemistry, circulation and
temperature.
(3) Sea level rise.
(4) Variation in precipitation.
(5) Saltwater intrusion into drinking water.
(6) Sunny day flooding.
(7) Decreased snowpack and seasonal water availability.
(8) Drought.
(9) Species mortality and extinction.
"Qualified product." A fossil fuel product, including:
(1) Crude petroleum oil and all other hydrocarbons,
regardless of gravity, that are produced at the wellhead in
liquid form by ordinary production methods.
(2) Natural, manufactured, mixed and byproduct
hydrocarbon gas.
(3) Refined crude oil, crude tops, topped crude,
processed crude, processed crude petroleum, residue from
crude petroleum, cracking stock, uncracked fuel oil, fuel
oil, treated crude oil, residuum, gas oil, casinghead
gasoline, natural-gas gasoline, kerosene, benzine, wash oil,
waste oil, blended gasoline, lubricating oil and blends or
mixtures of oil with one or more liquid products or
byproducts derived from oil or gas.
"Responsible party." A firm, corporation, company,
partnership, society, joint stock company or any other entity or
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association that emitted or caused to be emitted through the
extracting, storing, transporting, refining, importing,
exporting, producing, manufacturing, distributing, compounding,
marketing or offering for wholesale or retail sale, a qualified
product with total greenhouse gas emissions of at least one
billion metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent during the
covered period. The term does not include any public utility,
public authority or the Commonwealth or its political
subdivisions.
"Statute of limitations." An action under this act must be
commended within three years after the cause of action accrued.
"Strict liability." Liability that does not depend on actual
negligence or intent to harm but that is based on the breach of
an absolute duty to make something safe.
Section 4. Civil action enforcement.
(a) Exclusivity.--The requirements of this act shall be
enforced exclusively through the civil actions described in this
act.
(b) Conditions.--A person, other than an officer or employee
of a State or local governmental entity, may bring a civil
action against a responsible party when the following conditions
are met:
(1) The person qualifies as a harmed party.
(2) During any part of the covered period, the
responsible party did business in this Commonwealth, was
registered to do business in this Commonwealth, was appointed
an agent of the Commonwealth or otherwise had sufficient
contacts with the Commonwealth to give the Commonwealth
jurisdiction over the responsible party under State law.
(3) The statute of limitations for the action has not
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expired.
(c) Liability.--A responsible party is jointly and severally
liable to a plaintiff for strict liability if the plaintiff is a
harmed party.
(d) Location of action.--A harmed party shall be entitled to
bring an action against a responsible party for recovery of
damages in:
(1) the county in which all or a substantial part of the
events giving rise to the action occurred;
(2) the county of residence for any one of the natural
person defendants at the time the cause of action accrued;
(3) the county of the principal office in this
Commonwealth of any one of the defendants that is not a
natural person; or
(4) the county of residence for any plaintiff if the
plaintiff is a natural person residing in this Commonwealth.
(e) Transfer of venue.--If a civil action is brought under
this act in one of the venues described in subsection (d), the
action may not be transferred to a different venue, including
Federal court, without the written consent of all parties.
(f) Enforcement.--
(1) The fact that a harmed party brings legal action
against a responsible party under this act shall not be an
independent basis for enforcement of any other law of this
Commonwealth, or the denial, revocation, suspension or
withholding of any right or privilege conferred by the law of
this Commonwealth or a political subdivision, or a threat to
do the same, by this Commonwealth, a political subdivision, a
district, county or city attorney or an executive or
administrative officer or employee of this Commonwealth or a
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political subdivision, or a board, commission or similar body
assigned authority to do so under law, against any person.
(2) A civil action predicated upon a violation of this
act shall not be brought by this Commonwealth, a political
subdivision, a district, county or city attorney or an
executive or administrative officer or employee of this
Commonwealth or a political subdivision.
(g) Construction.--Nothing in this act shall be construed
to:
(1) Limit the enforceability of any other laws that
regulate or prohibit any conduct relating to climate
disasters, extreme weather, greenhouse gas emissions or
consumer protection.
(2) Replace legally mandated disaster recovery funds,
designated disaster recovery funds established via
legislation or administrative rule or contractually obligated
or court-ordered insurance claim payouts.
(h) Award.--If a claimant prevails in an action brought
under this section, the court shall award all of the following:
(1) The full extent of noneconomic, compensatory and
punitive damages allowable under the laws of this
Commonwealth.
(2) Compensatory damages in an amount of not less than
the fair market value of recovering, recouping, rebuilding or
remediating the value of lost, damaged and destroyed
property.
(3) Compensatory damages in an amount not less than the
cost of injuries to the harmed party, including medical care,
mental and behavioral health care, past and present pain and
suffering and emotional distress.
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(i) Time limitation.--A cause of action under this section
shall be extinguished unless the action is brought not later
than three years after the cause of action accrues.
(j) Injury in fact.--
(1) The connection of a climate disaster, extreme
weather attributable to climate change or harms resulting
from long-term changes to the climate system to alleged
injuries shall be deemed an injury in fact for all residents
of, and visitors to, this Commonwealth harmed by the event.
(2) A person alleging injuries under this subsection
shall have standing to bring a civil action under this act.
(k) Mediation or arbitration.--An action brought under this
section may be resolved by settlement through mediation or
arbitration upon written consent of both parties. Mediation or
arbitration may not be mandated by the courts of this
Commonwealth.
(l) Intervention prohibited.--The Commonwealth, a
Commonwealth official or a district, county or city attorney may
not intervene in an action brought under this section. This
subsection does not prohibit a person described by this
subsection from filing an amicus curiae brief in the action.
(m) Costs and fees.--A court may not award attorney fees or
costs to a defendant in an action brought under this section,
unless the plaintiff was represented by counsel in the action
and plaintiff's counsel is found to be in violation of the rules
of professional conduct or civil procedure in this Commonwealth.
(n) Acts or omissions.--An action under this section shall
not be brought against the Federal Government, the Commonwealth,
a political subdivision or an employee of the Federal
Government, the Commonwealth or a political subdivision on the
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basis of acts or omissions in the course of discharge of
official duties.
Section 5. Offsets to damages and defenses to liability.
(a) Offsets.--All of the following are offsets to damages:
(1) Payments made to a harmed party under a contract of
insurance. An insurer has the right to bring a subrogation
action against a responsible party for recovery of payments
made to a harmed party under a contract of insurance
regardless of whether the insured has been made whole.
(2) Evidence that a harmed party fully recovered from a
public body for alleged injuries.
(b) Affirmative defense.--The defendant has the burden of
proving an affirmative defense under this subsection by a
preponderance of the evidence. All of the following are
affirmative defenses to an action brought under this act:
(1) Evidence of intentional destruction of property or
intentional worsening of damage to reach the amount in
controversy threshold.
(2) Evidence of gross negligence by the harmed party.
Section 6. Fee and cost shifting from challenges to
enforcement.
(a) Liability for fees.--A person who seeks declaratory or
injunctive relief to prevent the Commonwealth, a political
subdivision, a governmental entity or public official or a
person in this Commonwealth from enforcing any portion of this
statute, Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure or any other
related law that promotes consumer protection and remedies to
injuries from climate disasters, extreme weather attributable to
climate change and harms resulting from long-term changes to the
climate system, or that represents any litigant seeking relief,
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is jointly and severally liable to pay the attorney fees and
costs of the prevailing party.
(b) Prevailing party.--For purposes of this section, a party
is considered a prevailing party if a court does either of the
following:
(1) dismisses any claim or cause of action brought by
the party seeking the declaratory or injunctive relief
described in subsection (a), regardless of the reason for the
dismissal; or
(2) enters judgment in favor of the party opposing the
declaratory or injunctive relief described in subsection (a),
on any claim or cause of action.
(c) Time limit for recovery of fees.--Regardless of whether
a prevailing party sought to recover attorney fees or costs in
the underlying action, a prevailing party under this section may
bring a civil action to recover attorney fees and costs against
a person that sought declaratory or injunctive relief described
under subsection (a) not later than the third anniversary of the
date on which, as applicable:
(1) The dismissal or judgment described in subsection
(b) becomes final upon the conclusion of appellate review.
(2) The time for seeking appellate review expires.
(d) Defense.--The following are not a defense to an action
brought under subsection (c):
(1) A prevailing party under this section failed to seek
recovery of attorney fees or costs in the underlying action.
(2) The court in the underlying action declined to
recognize or enforce the requirements of this section.
(3) The court in the underlying action held that any
provision of this section is invalid, unconstitutional or
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preempted by Federal law, notwithstanding the doctrines of
issue or claim preclusion.
(e) Not deemed prevailing party.--A person who seeks
declaratory or injunctive relief as described in subsection (a)
shall not be deemed a prevailing party under this act.
Section 7. Limitations.
This act shall not be construed to:
(1) Authorize the initiation of a cause of action under
this act against an entity that is not a responsible party.
(2) Authorize the initiation of a cause of action under
this act when the amount in controversy requirements are not
met.
(3) Wholly or partly repeal, either expressly or by
implication, any other statute that regulates or prohibits
any conduct relating to climate disasters, extreme weather
attributable to climate change and harms resulting from long-
term changes to the climate system.
Section 8. Effects.
(a) Remedies.--The remedies provided in this act are in
addition to any other remedy available to a person or the
Commonwealth at common law or under statute. This act may not be
interpreted to prevent a person or the Commonwealth from
pursuing a civil action or any other remedy available at common
law or under statute.
(b) Rights, liabilities and remedies.--This act does not:
(1) Relieve the liability of an entity for damages
resulting from climate change.
(2) Preempt, displace or restrict any rights or remedies
of a person, the Commonwealth, units of local government or
tribal government under law relating to a past, present or
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future allegation of any of the following:
(i) Deception concerning the effects of fossil fuels
on climate change.
(ii) Damage or injury resulting from the role of
fossil fuels in contributing to climate change.
(iii) Failure to avoid damage or injury related to
climate change, including claims for nuisance, trespass,
design defect, negligence, failure to warn or deceptive
or unfair practices and claims for injunctive,
declaratory, monetary or other relief.
(c) No preemption or displacement.--This act does not
preempt, supersede or displace any State law or local ordinance,
regulation, policy or program that:
(1) Limits, sets or enforces standards for emissions of
greenhouse gases.
(2) Monitors, reports or keeps records of emissions of
greenhouse gases.
(3) Collects revenue through fees or levy taxes.
(4) Conducts or supports investigations.
Section 9. Severability.
The provisions of this act are severable. If any provision of
this act or its application to any person or circumstance is
held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions
or applications of this act which can be given effect without
the invalid provision or application.
Section 10. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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