Will the Supreme Court Restrict EPA’s Authority to Address Climate Change?
In this room — this bureaucratic tedious room — the fate of the whole planet is decided. (From an article in The Atlantic describing an appellate court hearing on a challenge to EPA climate change regulations — an issue now before the Supreme Court.)
An update: On June 30, 2022, the Supreme Court decided the case, West Virginia v. EPA, in a 6–3 decision reflecting conservative and liberal ideologies. The decision is consistent with the analysis anticipated in my analysis and limits the regulatory instruments EPA has available to address climate change.
The lengthy list of challenges to effective climate change action may soon have yet another powerful addition — the U.S. Supreme Court. While the legal issues can be complicated, the bottom line is simple: a pending decision in a case argued in February, West Virginia v. EPA, is widely expected to narrow EPA’s authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. Even worse, Court watchers expect the case will be used to give greater weight to a new test making it more difficult for government agencies to protect public health and safety
What’s the issue? Congress has never given EPA specific authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. However, in a 5–4 decision in 2007, Massachusetts v. EPA, the Supreme Court concluded EPA was obligated to do so under the broad language…
