24 States Sue EPA Over Repeal of Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding

Attorneys general from 24 states filed a lawsuit Thursday against the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) reversal last month of its 2009 endangerment finding, which stated that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles harm the public health and welfare.

The suit, filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, was spearheaded by Connecticut Attorney General William Tong.

The endangerment finding, issued under the Clean Air Act after the Supreme Court’s 2007 decision in Massachusetts v. EPA, created the scientific and legal foundation for federal regulations curtailing greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, power plants, and other sources. The Trump administration’s EPA revoked the finding earlier this year.

The coalition also includes 12 counties and cities, such as Los Angeles, New York, Boston, and Chicago. They allege that the rescission violates the Clean Air Act, goes against scientific consensus, disregards Supreme Court precedent, and ignores the EPA’s duty to safeguard public health. 

The states argue the decision prioritizes fossil fuel industry interests.

“Rescinding the Endangerment Finding means bigger profits for the world’s biggest polluters, while the rest of us are left more vulnerable to extreme weather, extreme heat and rising sea levels. Connecticut is leading states and cities across the country in suing today and we’re going to fight with everything we’ve got,” Tong said in a statement.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta confirmed the state’s involvement, criticizing the Trump administration and the EPA’s decision.

“Workers, families, and communities would pay the price, left choking on dirty air,” Newsom said in a statement.

“We’ll fight this lawlessness in court.”

The states want the endangerment finding reinstated and federal authority to regulate greenhouse gases restored. 

The EPA published a notice in the Federal Register on Feb. 18 stating that the repeal will take effect on April 20.

The EPA “continues to harbor concerns regarding the scientific analysis contained in the Endangerment Finding,” the notice states.

The agency said it now takes the position that the repeal allows it to “effectuate the best reading” of Clean Air Act provisions.

In a reversal of EPA policy, the agency said in the notice that it now concludes that it lacks statutory authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions “in response to global climate change concerns.”

Such policies should be made by Congress, and “Congress did not decide the Nation’s policy response” to climate-related concerns when it enacted the domestic air pollution provisions of the Clean Air Act almost 60 years ago, the notice states.

President Donald Trump had previously said the “crippling restrictions were a major factor in driving up car prices to unprecedented levels” and that they diminished car quality.

“This determination had no basis in fact, none whatsoever, and it had no basis in law,” Trump said.

Matthew Vadum contributed to this report.