EPA Clean Power Plan Rule
On June 2, 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed rule known as the Clean Power Plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing natural gas or coal power plants. The rule was finalized on August 3, 2015.
On February 9, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an order staying EPA’s Clean Power Plan (CPP). The decision to stay the rule was made by the full Court in a 5-4 vote. The order effectively reverses a January 21 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia denying a stay. Twenty-seven states and numerous industry groups have challenged the CPP’s legality in the D.C. Circuit, and many of those petitioners sought to stay the rule until the legal proceedings are complete. The stay will remain in effect until the D.C. Circuit resolves the legal challenges to the CPP and either the Supreme Court decides not to review the D.C. Circuit’s decision or the Supreme Court issues its own opinion. The D.C. Circuit previously granted a motion to consider the challenges on an expedited basis, and it will hear oral arguments on June 2.
Under a stay, EPA cannot take actions to implement or enforce the CPP until pending legal challenges against the rule are resolved in the courts. Idaho will continue to monitor the legal challenge of the CPP and provide updates as applicable.
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