Federal Judge Joseph Goodwin blocked West Virginia Attorney General Patrick McCuskey from enforcing investigative subpoenas against two environmental nonprofits, West Virginia Rivers Coalition and 350.org, finding the demands likely violated the First Amendment.
McCuskey sought ten years of internal files from the groups, including drafts, funding sources, board members, coalition partners, and comments submitted to state agencies. The Attorney General claimed the organizations violated the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act by advocating policies based partly on a climate model he deemed "implausible."
Goodwin ruled the subpoenas targeted protected speech and association, not commercial conduct. The nonprofits do not sell goods or services and operate as 501(c)(3) organizations funded by foundations and public donations. They engage in climate advocacy, public education, and litigation over environmental permits and infrastructure projects.
The judge applied "exacting scrutiny" to the disclosure demands, finding no substantial relation between the subpoenas and a sufficiently important government interest. He wrote, "The country was founded on the premise that a citizen owes the government no account of his opinions or of the people he holds them with."
Goodwin granted the organizations a temporary restraining order preventing McCuskey from enforcing the subpoenas for fourteen days.