Clean Power Plan Court Case Delayed Until September

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has postponed hearing challenges to the federal Clean Power Plan until Sept. 27. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulation is designed to reduce carbon emissions from electricity generation by at least 32 percent by 2030.

The postponed date will allow the full 17-judge panel to review the case instead of a 3-judge panel originally scheduled to hear arguments on June 2.

The case will determine whether it’s legal for the EPA to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants under a specific section of the Clean Air Act. If the EPA wins, emission reductions must be met by any stationary source that emits carbon dioxide, and the EPA will have the power to require the best technology and systems to meet the reductions.

Until the review occurs, the EPA cannot implement or enforce the Clean Power Plan.

Although the carbon regulations have generated significant attention among policymakers, a recent national survey shows that 7 in 10 voters have heard “just a little or nothing at all” about the Clean Power Plan. — Hannah Petersen