| West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Argued February 28, 2022 Decided June 30, 2022 | |
| Full case name | West Virginia, et al. v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al. The North American Coal Corporation v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al. Westmoreland Mining Holdings LLC v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al. North Dakota v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al. |
| Docket nos. | 20-1530 20-1531 20-1778 20-1780 |
| Citations | 597 U.S. 697 (more) |
| Argument | Oral argument |
| Decision | Opinion |
| Holding | |
| Congress did not grant the Environmental Protection Agency in Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act the authority to devise emissions caps based on the generation shifting approach the Agency took in the Clean Power Plan. | |
| Court membership | |
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| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Roberts, joined by Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett |
| Concurrence | Gorsuch, joined by Alito |
| Dissent | Kagan, joined by Breyer, Sotomayor |
| Laws applied | |
| Clean Air Act | |
West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency, 597 U.S. 697 (2022), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court relating to the Clean Air Act, and the extent to which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can regulate carbon dioxide emissions related to climate change.
The case centers on the Clean Power Plan (CPP) proposed by the EPA in 2015 under the Obama administration. Among the provisions, the CPP had included regulation at existing power plants under Section 7411(d) of Title 42 of the United States Code to implement "within the fence line" emissions reduction technology and "outside the fence line" generation shifting to alternative clean energy sources such as solar and wind power. The generation shifting aspects of the CPP were challenged by several states and coal industry companies, and the CPP was stayed by the courts and never came into enforcement. The Trump administration's EPA put forth a less-aggressive Affordable Clean Power rule in 2019 which was similar and stayed by courts. The stay was challenged by multiple states and coal industry companies, seeking to question the EPA's ability to regulate existing power plants under 7411(d) as proposed in the CPP. The case was not rendered moot when the Biden administration took over in 2021, as the EPA under the Biden administration stated their inclination to include "outside the fence line" controls, making the case still relevant to the authority the EPA had in interpreting their Congressional charter.
In a 6–3 ruling issued on June 30, 2022, the Court ruled that the regulation of existing power plants in Section 7411(d) fell under the major questions doctrine, and within that, Congress did not grant the EPA authority to regulate emissions from existing plants based on generation shifting mechanisms, which would have invalidated the Clean Power Plan. The EPA may still continue to regulate emissions at existing plants through emissions reduction technologies.