Justices mull EPA’s power to curb greenhouse gas
Arguments come same day as UN report on global climate change
WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court wrestled Monday with the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to curb greenhouse gas emissions from the nation’s power plants, a case that could hamstring the Biden administration’s plans to combat climate change.
The justices heard more than two hours of arguments over whether to limit the EPA’s power to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from electric utilities on the same day a U.N. science report painted a dire picture of global climate change.
A major report from a U.N. panel of hundreds of scientists detailed how climate change – caused by the burning of coal, oil and natural gas – is already taking a deadly toll and will get worse.
Just how much worse depends on how quickly the world cuts is carbon emissions, with coal being the biggest polluter, the report said.
At the high court, the justices took up an appeal from 19 mostly Republicanled states and coal companies that contend the EPA has only narrow authority to regulate carbon output.
Some conservative justices appeared skeptical of broad EPA authority over carbon dioxide emissions, but there could be obstacles to issuing a major ruling. Among these are arguments from power plant operators serving 40 million people that call on the court to maintain the companies’ flexibility to reduce emissions while maintaining reliable service.
President Joe Biden has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by the end of the decade, but he has so far failed to win congressional approval of climate change proposals contained in his Build Back Better plan.
A new policy to regulate carbon productions from power plants is not expected before the end of the year, Elizabeth Prelogar, Biden’s top Supreme Court lawyer, told the justices Monday.
But the court did not appear interested in Prelogar’s argument that it should dismiss the case because there is no current EPA plan in place to deal with carbon output from power plants.
Environmental groups have worried that the court could preemptively undermine whatever plan Biden’s team develops to address power plant emissions. A broad ruling by the court also could weaken regulatory efforts that extend well beyond the environment, including consumer protections, workplace safety and public health. Several conservative justices have criticized what they see as the unchecked power of federal agencies.
Those concerns were evident in the court’s orders throwing out two Biden administration policies aimed at reducing the spread of COVID-19. Last summer, the court’s 6-3 conservative majority ended a pause on evictions over unpaid rent. In January, the same six justices blocked a requirement that workers at large employers be vaccinated or test regularly and wear a mask on the job.
A decision is expected by late June.