Key facts
- The Trump administration rescinded EPA's carbon rules for power plants on Monday.
- The move could weaken the administration's legal theory in a Supreme Court case.
- The Supreme Court case seeks to block lawsuits against oil producers for climate change costs.
- The administration has argued EPA has authority over greenhouse gas emissions.
The Trump administration's decision on Monday to undo Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) climate rules could complicate its strategy to block climate lawsuits against oil producers. The administration has made EPA's authority over greenhouse gas emissions central to its argument against these lawsuits, which seek to hold oil companies financially responsible for climate change.
By formally rescinding the EPA's carbon rules for power plants, the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas pollution, the administration may have weakened its legal position. Lawyers observing the situation believe this move could make the Justice Department's Supreme Court case more difficult by undermining the legal theory that EPA is the primary regulator of climate emissions.
Sean Donahue, an attorney who has defended federal limits on carbon pollution, suggested that the administration will likely attempt to argue that the Clean Air Act still prevents state-level climate action, despite the rollback.