Republican state attorneys general sued EPA on May 9 seeking to stop implementation of the agency’s final rule aimed at slashing greenhouse gas emissions from existing coal plants and new natural gas plants. 

Under the rule released April 25, existing coal-fired power plants nationwide will have to either close by 2039 or use carbon capture and storage or other technologies to capture 90% of their emissions by 2032. New natural gas plants will have until 2035 to similarly cut their emissions, through efficient design, carbon capture or a combination of both. (See EPA Power Plant Rules Squeeze Coal Plants; Existing Natural Gas Plants Exempt.) 

The suit, filed with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, is led by Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, the latter of whom led states’ successful lawsuit against the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan. (See Supreme Court Rejects EPA Generation Shifting.) 

“The EPA continues to not fully understand the direction from the Supreme Court; unelected bureaucrats continue their pursuit to legislate rather than rely on elected members of Congress for guidance,” Morrisey said in a statement. “We are confident we will once again prevail in court against this rogue agency.” 

The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association filed its own suit against the rule with the D.C. Circuit the same day. 

“EPA’s power plant rule is unlawful, unreasonable and unachievable. It exceeds EPA’s authority and poses an immediate threat to the American electric grid,” CEO Jim Matheson said. “Reliable electricity is the foundation of the American economy. EPA’s rule recklessly undermines that foundation by forcing the premature closure of power plants that are critical to keeping the lights on — especially as America increasingly relies on electricity to power the economy.” 

Both suits are essentially placeholders, petitioning the court for judicial review and attaching the rule as evidence but making no arguments. They were filed a day after a separate suit — led by Morrisey and North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley, and joined by 21 other Republican-led states — was filed with the D.C. Circuit challenging EPA’s updated implementation of the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, announced by Administrator Michael Regan at the same time as the power plant rule. 

“The Biden administration pushes a green political agenda with no purpose other than to attack fossil fuels. Make no mistake, this rule intentionally sets impossible standards to destroy the coal industry,” Wrigley said in a statement. “Federal agencies cannot decide on a whim to destroy entire industries. They are only permitted to work within the bounds that Congress set for them.” 

EPA declined to comment on the pending litigation.