(The Center Square) – A climate-change lawsuit by the city of Charleston against 24 oil and gas companies should be dismissed because global warming “is not an issue for courts to decide,” an attorney for the companies argued Thursday.

“It’s a scientific policy issue that should be decided by the political branches: the executive branch and Congress,” Chevron attorney Ted Boutrous told South Carolina Circuit Court Judge Roger Young in a hearing. “A string of cases from state courts and federal courts require dismissal.”

The office of South Carolina’s attorney general agrees.

“The state agrees entirely with the defense position here that their motion to dismiss should be granted entirely on the merits,” Ben McGray, assistant deputy solicitor with the South Carolina attorney general’s office, told the judge Thursday.

The U.S. Constitution prohibits one state from dictating or regulating conduct in another state, Gray said.

“Allowing the plantiffs’ claims to go forward, would this violate the equal dignity that is afforded each state in the union,” Gray said. “That’s inherent in our federal system.”

In the lawsuit filed in 2020, Charleston claimed the companies contributed to greenhouse gas pollution, global warming, and climate change by selling fossil fuel products.

In the lawsuit, Charleston seeks unspecified monetary damages from the oil and gas companies.

Attorneys for Charleston argued Thursday that the oil and gas companies knew that their products contributed to climate change but kept that from the public.

Vic Sher, one of Charleston’s attorneys, compared the Charleston climate change case to tobacco, opioid lawsuits and asbestos lawsuits.

Sher said as a result of climate change, Charleston will have to spend billions of dollars to construct sea walls and other mitigation measures. The lawsuit does not seek to dictate how other states handle climate change.

“It is about the money,” the attorney told the judge. “The complaint states that the purpose of the lawsuit is to transfer money from those who benefit from the misconduct – the wrongful promotion and marketing and the failures to warn – to the taxpayers who would otherwise have to bear that burden.”

Boutrous countered that Charleston is asking the oil and gas companies to pay for alleged climate change damage that “overwhelmingly occurred in other states, other countries.”

An estimated 87% of global carbon emissions are generated outside of the United States, he told the judge.

“Only .17% of greenhouse gas emissions originate in South Carolina,” he said.

The hearing is scheduled to resume Friday.

(The Center Square) – Georgia Public Service Commission candidate Daniel Blackman said Thursday he is appealing a decision to remove him from the June primary ballot.

Blackman was vying for the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican incumbent Fritz Johnson for the District 3 seat in November.

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger disqualified Blackman on Wednesday, the day after early voting began, after a challenge to Blackman’s residency in District 3.

“While I respectfully disagree with the ruling, I want to be clear: I am not stepping away,” Blackman said in a statement posted on his campaign page. “My team is appealing the decision, and I will remain fully committed to the fight for energy justice and public accountability in Georgia. The fact that a decision to remove me was made during early voting only underscores what many of us already know: this race matters.”

Democrats Peter Hubbard, Robert Jones and Keisha Sean Waites are on the District 3 ballot for the June 17 primary.

Republican Tim Echols, representing District 2, has a primary challenger in Lee Muns. Alicia Johnson is the lone Democrat in the primary.

The commissioners must live in their district, but all Georgia eligible voters participate in the election. 

Early voting began Tuesday and ends on June 13.

The Center Square was unsuccessful prior to publication getting comment from the secretary of state’s office.

(The Center Square) – The Tennessee Office of the Comptroller of the Treasury said an organization that provides services to children and families in four counties “failed to retain supporting documentation justifying at least $250,453.33 in questionable credit card charges.”

The Davis House Child Advocacy Center received about 33% of its $5.3 million in funding from government sources during the investigative period, according to the report released Thursday. The audit examined records from January 2020 to August 2024 and looked at two credit cards.

The balances on the cards were “consistently high,” the report said. The largest balances were more than $13,700 on one card and more than $24,800 on a second card.

The organization had a pattern of “recurring and increasing operational deficit,” according to the comptroller’s office.

“Between 2020 and 2023, DHCAC spent more money than it could generate from revenue sources,” the report said. “Although the DHCAC audit report for the year ending 2024 was not available, officials told investigators that in 2024, the entity experienced financial difficulties in meeting the employees’ payroll obligations and meeting the required reimbursements for travel expenses, further indicating a pattern of recurring and increasing operational deficit.”

The former executive director is accused of using the organization’s credit card for more than $256 in personal purchases at Florida’s Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort. He attended a conference at the resort that was paid for by the Davis House, the report said.

The comptroller’s office could not find any evidence that the purchases were repaid to the organization. The former executive director wrote a check to the organization for fuel and personal purchases, according to the report.

Other questionable charges include more than $1,000 spent at L.L. Bean for what was labeled “staff Christmas gifts” and a $70 charge to a beauty salon, which was described as a gift to an employee and recorded as “Employee Goodwill.”

The records also show purchases for entertainment, alcohol and restaurants, according to the report.

“DHCAC officials told investigators that purchases at restaurants and for alcohol were for donors, board members, visitors, and employees during meetings, events, or fundraisers,” the report said.

The comptroller’s findings were forwarded to the local district attorney’s offices.

The Center Square was unsuccessful prior to publication of getting comment from the organization.

“It is essential that nonprofit organizations with public funding operate transparently and within clearly defined financial policies,” said Comptroller Jason Mumpower. “Proper oversight by the Board of Directors and documentation help prevent wasteful spending, protect the organization’s mission, and promote public trust.”