A Critical Case on California’s Emissions Standards to be Heard by the Supreme Court
A pedestrian walks past the US Supreme Court after President Joe Biden proposed sweeping changes to the nation’s highest court, including term limits and a binding code of conduct for its nine justices, in Washington, US, July 29, 2024.
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case related to California’s ability to set its own, often strict, vehicle emissions standards, including curbs on greenhouse gases. This has become a contentious and politicized issue, particularly since California began regulating greenhouse gases to combat climate change.
The case stems from the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to issue national standards under the federal Clean Air Act. Specifically, the court will examine whether various business interests, including liquid fuel companies, have legal standing to sue, arguing that demand for their products would decrease under California’s rules.
The court did not agree to hear the bigger issue of whether the provision allowing California to set its own standards is unlawful. The underlying California regulation was adopted in 2012, setting standards to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and requiring each manufacturer to sell a certain number of zero-emission vehicles. The state aims to have all cars and light trucks be zero-emission vehicles by 2035.
The most recent EPA waiver, in 2022, prompted 17 Republican states, led by Ohio, and business groups to sue. The Supreme Court did not act on the separate appeal brought by the states. Some vehicle manufacturers backed the EPA in the lower court, pointing out that manufacturers are already meeting the state’s standards. The business challengers argue that the waiver “permits California to operate as a quasi-federal regulator on global climate change.” The states argue that the provision in the Clean Air Act allowing for the veto is unconstitutional because it treats California differently compared to other states.
The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled in favor of the EPA in April.