This is not just another legal filing. It is a statement that the economic and health consequences of dismantling climate protections are real, measurable, and disproportionately borne by young people.
And fittingly, the brief was authored by a young leader: Connor Stout, age 20, a senior at Denison University
Why We Filed
The challenged executive orders — 14154, 14156, and 14261 — expand fossil fuel development while dismantling climate mitigation and monitoring systems. Our brief demonstrates that these actions are not only environmentally reckless, but also economically catastrophic.
EPA data shows that clean air protections prevented 230,000 premature deaths and preserved $1.8 trillion in economic value in 2020 alone. Rolling back those protections isn’t just bad science — it’s bad economics.
The Costs of Deregulation
Our brief documents how these policies create an intergenerational transfer of risk:
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Higher healthcare costs and reduced life expectancy from air pollution.
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Lost productivity and diminished income as illness and disasters disrupt education and work.
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Destabilized housing and insurance markets as major insurers withdraw from climate-exposed regions.
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Trillions in long-term damages shifted from today’s policymakers and corporations to tomorrow’s taxpayers.
Voices From the Brief
As I noted when filing: “This case is about much more than environmental policy. It is about the transfer of trillions of dollars in hidden costs from today’s decision-makers to tomorrow’s taxpayers. Young people like Connor will literally pay the price in diminished health, shortened life expectancy, lost income, and destabilized communities.” — William Michael Cunningham
And from Connor, the author of the brief: “The youth of this country are not passive bystanders to the climate crisis. We are its inheritors. Deregulation mortgages our future for short-term gains, leaving young Americans to bear the costs of climate instability, weakened infrastructure, and destabilized markets.” — Connor Stout
Why This Matters
The Court must understand that these harms are not hypothetical. They are happening now:
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Asthma attacks and school days lost.
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Families priced out of insurance in Florida, California, and Louisiana.
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Communities facing billion-dollar disasters every year with less federal support.
Every one of these is a direct, measurable outcome of policies that put short-term profits ahead of generational justice.
Moving Forward
This amicus brief is not the end of our work — it is part of an ongoing effort to hold policymakers accountable for the true costs of deregulation.
By empowering young leaders like Connor to take a central role, we not only present the strongest possible economic case, but also make clear that the next generation refuses to remain silent while their future is bargained away.
✦ Read More: For a copy of the brief, email us at info@creativeinvest.com.