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Exclusive: Nearly half of state attorneys general will ask House Judiciary Committee to expand investigation into impacts related to climate policies federal judge Incorporate gold standard guidance used by judges to examine subjects with which they are often unfamiliar.
development is in a Fox News Digital Coverage Criticisms of the latest 1,600-page Scientific Evidence Reference Manual from the Federal Justice Center (FJC) were highlighted. Critics say the traditionally apolitical reference guide is now riddled with ideological bias related to climate change and cites numerous footnotes from left-leaning and climate alarmists.
The Federal Judicial Center itself is the research and educational institution of the federal judiciary, and its Board of Governors is chaired by Chief Justice John Roberts.
Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers is leading the effort, writing to the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee Jim JordanOhio Republicans, subcommittee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, urged them to expand the undue influence investigation to include what they called “improper attempts to manipulate the outcome of a case to favor one party.”
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Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, holds a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on September 3, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dickey/Getty Images)
The latest edition, published on December 31, includes a foreword by Justice Elena Kagan, then delves into topics footnoted by environmental law expert Jessica Wentz, climatologist Michael Mann, and many others involved in climate change research and advocacy.
“The same concerns about undue influence apply to the Federal Judicial Center and its new Scientific Evidence Reference Manual,” the attorneys general wrote.
They point to Kagan’s preface saying previous versions of the manual helped “bring about better, fairer legal decisions,” but don’t think her words will get the same response in the latest version.
People walk past the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, DC, on January 9, 2026. (Reuters/Jonathan Ernst)
“Like (the) Climate Justice Project The committee is investigating and the new chapter presents a highly biased, agenda-driven view that favors radical interest groups bringing lawsuits against producers and users of traditional forms of fossil fuel energy,” the attorney general argued, citing findings by Jessica Wentz. climate change advocate Columbia University et al.
They cited a court brief Wentz wrote opposing the Willow drilling project in Alaska, in which she was quoted as saying “the world needs to phase out fossil fuels as quickly as possible to avoid the potentially catastrophic levels of global warming and climate change.”
Prosecutors also noted that it included the work of an attorney representing the city of Honolulu in its case against Legacy Energy.
“Not surprisingly, given the strong biases of its authors, reviewers, and sources, the climate change chapter presents the methodology upon which plaintiffs rely to impose liability on fossil fuel defendants,” the letter reads.
“This chapter presents the science as authoritative without acknowledging opposing views or disclosing the many conflicts among the authors, reviewers, and sources. Ethics experts note that these issues raise serious ethical concerns.”
Hilgers said in an interview with Fox News Digital that the FJC’s new science manual should present complex evidence fairly but “seems to embed the perspectives of climate activists and diversity, equity and inclusion theorists into neutral guidance.”
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“When advocates and experts active in litigating climate cases help write and review chapters that are used behind the scenes by federal judges, it raises clear and serious concerns about the integrity of the justice system,” Hilgers said.
“Nebraskans and all Americansdeserves a neutral and fair court. “
The letter was also signed by Alaska Attorney General Stephen Cox, Florida Attorney General James Usmeier, West Virginia Attorney General JB McCaskeyAlabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman, and fellow state attorneys in Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Wyoming.
“We’re seeing ridiculous legal wars spreading across the country – politically motivated groups using our courts and liberal judges to push their climate agenda. It’s bad enough,” McCaskey told Fox News Digital, saying now is the time to prevent the influence of “junk science.” “
“We … must protect our justice system and its integrity,” he said.
McCaskey also sent a letter to the FJC itself, signed by Marshall, Usmeier, Cox and others.
He told the center’s director — Florida federal judge Robin Rosenberg, an Obama appointee — that the manual’s universality must remain credible.
“At least so far, the (FJC) has been careful to emphasize that the manual simply “describes basic principles in major scientific areas… Instead, the fourth edition places the judiciary firmly on the side of some of the most contentious issues in current litigation: climate-related science and ‘attribution.’ “
“This type of work undermines the integrity of the judiciary and puts a thumb on one side of the scale,” McCaskey said.
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CEO, American Energy Institute Jason Isaacs added that a committee of federal judges mistakenly used taxpayer funds to publish a reference manual that “embeds controversial, plaintiff-driven climate alarmism into the materials the judges reference.”
“This is not about educating, it’s about shaping outcomes and directly undermining the administration of justice,” Isaac said.
OH Skinner of Consumers Union called the development a “woke legal playbook in action” and said climate change campaigners saw the courts as their best chance of perpetuating their ideology.
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Asked to comment on the issue of her footnotes being censored, Wentz responded: “No comment.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Jordan, Grassley and the FJC for comment.
