In SCOTUS first, court stays clean power rule pending DC Circuit review; four justices dissent
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued an unprecedented order that stays the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan from taking effect before review by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
It is the first time that the court has stayed a regulation before review by a federal appeals court, the New York Times reports. The case is likely to return to the U.S. Supreme Court, and the stay “was an early hint that the program could face a skeptical reception from the justices,” according to the Times.
Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan dissented from the stay grant. How Appealing links to additional coverage, including stories by the Associated Press, SCOTUSblog and the Washington Post.
The Environmental Protection Agency regulation is intended to fight global warming by limiting carbon emissions from electric power plants and increasing solar and wind power. Before the stay, states had a September deadline to submit plans for compliance. The first deadline for reduced emissions was in 2022.
The court granted the stay in response to five separate challenges, including an appeal by 29 states and state agencies.
