State Rep. Dave Prestin on Monday signed onto a letter sent to Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel condemning her plan to sue Michigan oil and gas providers. Nessel intends to sue key energy providers that she claims knowingly contributed to climate change.

“Energy and fuel costs for regular people are already way too high. The only reason they’ve haven’t gone higher is because of American oil and gas production,” said Prestin, R-Cedar River. “This access gives us an affordable and readily available baseload energy supply that helps keep costs down and the lights on for families across the Upper Peninsula. Democrats in Lansing and Washington, D.C., are already forcing a devasting shift to unreliable wind and solar power. Now, they want to bankrupt the companies powering our state before anyone can undo their terrible policies.”

Last week, Nessel announced she would use taxpayer resources to seek proposals from outside lawyers who wish to sue oil and gas providers on behalf of her office. Prestin noted that if Nessel’s plan is successful, it will mean that she had expended taxpayer dollars to pay the salary of an individual whose efforts will have raised energy costs even further.

“These energy providers didn’t commit any crimes, yet Nessel is going after them anyway,” Prestin said. “What’s the next step? Will this Attorney General prosecute homeowners who use unconventional home heating systems like an outdoor boiler? What about people who heat their home with propane or natural gas furnaces? There is a concerted effort within the state and federal governments to pull household appliances like gas stoves and dryers right out of our homes. They’re not just after your car, they’re after everything that makes modern life affordable.”

The businesses that Nessel’s office plan to target play a vital role in the daily lives of Michigan families by fueling vehicles, heating homes, and providing raw materials for other critical industries. She claims these companies knew what they were doing. Republican lawmakers are now asking who could be next to face politically motivated legal action. More than 31 legislators signed onto the letter slamming Nessel for weaponizing her office for political gain.

“The attorney general’s job is to charge criminals and make our communities safer, not play make believe with crimes that don’t exist,” Prestin said. “She continues to erode the public’s trust in her office with politically motivated prosecutions. Dana Nessel needs to stop catering to limousine environmentalists and actually buckle down and do her job.”

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