The Supreme Court ruled Monday against the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) effort to limit certain power plant emissions — saying the agency "unreasonably" failed to consider the cost of the regulations.
The rules curbing emissions of mercury and other hazardous air pollutants began to take effect in April. But in the court's 5-4 ruling, the following remarks were made:
"We hold that EPA interpreted §7412(n)(1)(A) unreasonably when it deemed cost irrelevant to the decision to regulate power plants. We reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals for the D. C. Circuit and remand the cases for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”
Governor Greg Abbott has issued the following statement on the Supreme Court’s decision to reject the EPA’s regulations on power plants:
“The Supreme Court rightly held that the EPA violated the law when it imposed a multi-billion-dollar regulation on power plants without considering whether the cost was justified. While today’s decision is good news for Texas, the EPA continues to push an agenda with little regard for the price tag these regulations would impose on employers and ultimately, Texans. Texas will stand ready to continue our fight against an over-bearing federal government that stands in the way of economic prosperity.”
The Monday decision does not necessarily strike down the rule, but it means the EPA will have to review and rewrite it, taking costs into consideration.