In May 2024, Vermont Gov. Phil Scott signed into law Vermont’s Climate Superfund Act. The law authorizes the state of Vermont to recover financial damages from fossil fuel companies.

At the time of its enactment, it was the first law of its kind in the United States. More recently, some of Pennsylvania’s neighboring states have taken steps to institute their own climate change laws aimed at imposing damages on fossil fuel companies that states allege are responsible for climate impacts.