Attorneys general in Wyoming, Montana and 14 other conservative states are alleging big-name tech companies are misleading consumers about their support for green energy.
In a letter to Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft dated Sept. 24, the attorneys general accused them of using “environmental accounting gimmicks” to say they’re powered by renewables.
“These claims appear deceptive given the increasing electricity demands of those companies and the realities of the U.S. electrical grid,” the letter says, before requesting the companies answer a series of questions about their energy use, policies and claims.
The state officials specifically criticize how the tech companies buy clean energy.
“The attorney generals are questioning the longstanding way we've done things,” said John Rogers, associate director of energy analytics at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
Rogers said companies don’t always have control over where utilities get power. So, they may buy renewable energy certificates (RECs) from solar or wind farms to be more green and offset their energy use.
The attorneys general said companies don’t actually use that energy, and this doesn't make them “powered by” renewables. A spokesperson from Amazon said this reliance on RECs is temporary.
“Amazon purchases RECs as a temporary bridging mechanism while we wait for renewable energy projects to come online,” the spokesperson wrote via email.
Rogers said buying RECs fuels more demand for renewables.
“You can be forcing action elsewhere in the market,” he explained.
The attorneys general also claim the tech companies are pushing utilities toward “harmful net-zero goals,” and this has led to coal and gas plants shutting their doors.
“These utility commitments have helped contribute to the phenomenon of early retirement of coal and natural gas plants, which is raising state concerns and threatening the integrity of the electric grid,” the letter reads.
The attorneys general also say that this threatens President Donald Trump’s efforts to “unleash American energy."
Rogers said these points may suggest the state officials have ulterior motives.
“Their interest may not be entirely about ensuring the integrity of renewable energy markets and more about propping up fossil fuels,” he said.
The letter asks companies to respond to Montana’s Officer of Consumer Protection by Oct. 27.
The spokesperson from Amazon said the company has received the letter and is reviewing it. A representative for Microsoft said no comment. Google and Meta did not respond by deadline.
In addition to Montana and Wyoming, the attorneys general who sent the letter represent Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Florida, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, West Virginia.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Northern Colorado, KANW in New Mexico, Colorado Public Radio, KJZZ in Arizona and NPR, with additional support from affiliate newsrooms across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Eric and Wendy Schmidt.
