The Supreme Court could soon gut the ability of federal agencies to limit the pollution that creates smog and causes climate change.
This year, SCOTUS will weigh in on a pair of cases that could overturn or severely limit a foundational principal called Chevron deference. For decades, thanks to the Chevron doctrine, judges have deferred to experts at federal agencies on how to implement a law when there are disputes over interpreting language in legislation. Overturning that precedent would weaken the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies to regulate industry.
In another high-profile case, SCOTUS will decide whether to stay the EPA’s Good Neighbor Plan. The plan is supposed to prevent smog-forming pollution from one state from drifting into other states. It’s a national strategy for reining in pollution that doesn’t stop at state borders. Around a dozen states are challenging the plan, however, and Ohio and other plaintiffs want the Supreme Court to pause the plan’s implementation while those cases make their way through lower courts.
The Verge has your guide to what’s at stake as SCOTUS considers key environmental lawsuits this year.
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It’s not looking good for the EPA’s ‘Good Neighbor Plan.’
The largely conservative Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday for Ohio v. EPA, and it sounds like SCOTUS is sympathetic to plaintiffs fighting the agency’s Good Neighbor Plan. The plan would force states, including Ohio, to prevent smog-forming pollution from drifting downwind to other states. More than a dozen states are fighting the plan in lower courts, and Ohio wants SCOTUS to force the EPA to pause the plan entirely while those legal battles are ongoing. Whether SCOTUS sides with Ohio now likely points to how it would rule later if any of those cases in lower courts ultimately make their way to SCOTUS.
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a:hover]:text-gray-63 [&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-black dark:[&>a:hover]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a:hover]:shadow-underline-gray [&>a]:shadow-underline-gray-63 dark:[&>a]:text-gray-bd dark:[&>a]:shadow-underline-gray”>Photo by Drew Angerer / Getty Images The Supreme Court heard oral arguments this week on a couple of cases that could completely upend the way federal agencies regulate just about anything in the US. At question is a legal doctrine called Chevron deference that allows federal agencies to interpret laws meant to protect consumers, public health, and the environment. Now, a conservative supermajority in the Supreme Court appears on the precipice of either overturning or limiting the scope of Chevron deference.
The Verge spoke with legal experts about what’s going on and what the Supreme Court’s decisions on Chevron deference could ultimately mean for Americans. “The real question is how far they will go?” says Jody Freeman, director of the Environmental and Energy Law Program at Harvard. “They could in fact, overturn that precedent. And that could lead to considerable uncertainty and chaos.”
