Pallone & Carper File Amicus Brief Defending EPA’s Authority to Protect Public Health and the Environment from Vehicle Pollution
Petitioners Rely on the “Major Questions” Doctrine Despite Congress Explicitly Granting EPA Authority to Regulate Pollution from Motor Vehicles in the Clean Air Act
House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) and Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Tom Carper (D-DE) have filed an amicus brief in the pending Texas v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) case before the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
The case, which was brought by Texas and fourteen other states, challenges EPA's authority to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from motor vehicles under the Clean Air Act. Petitioners aim to overturn EPA's Revised 2023 Model Year GHG Emission Standards, arguing that they violate the "major questions" doctrine despite Congress explicitly granting EPA the authority to regulate pollution from motor vehicles in Section 202 of the Clean Air Act – clear statutory authority the agency has consistently used for decades.
"This case is political activism masquerading as legal theory. The Clean Air Act is explicit, and it is clear: the EPA has the express, statutory authority to issue technology-based emissions standards for motor vehicles. The ‘major questions' doctrine simply does not apply, and by arguing otherwise, petitioners have only betrayed their own ability to understand the plain text of the law," said Pallone. "The Clean Air Act has stood as a pillar of environmental law for more than 50 years, and Congress has both reaffirmed and strengthened it multiple times since. Just last year, Congress affirmed support for EPA's authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions with the Inflation Reduction Act. The Court must not allow petitioners to rewrite history and derail the historic progress Congress has intentionally made toward protecting public health and the environment."
"For more than 50 years, EPA has been able to establish emissions standards for the vehicles on our roads," said Carper. "These standards allow Americans to breathe cleaner air and save money at the pump while reducing harmful greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. We are urging the Court to reject this misguided attempt to severely undermine our ability to improve air quality and combat the climate crisis."
Today's filing comes after Pallone and Carper defended states' rights to establish GHG standards for automobiles that are stronger than federal standards in January.
Full text of the amicus brief is available HERE.
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