Will Courts Step in to Squelch EPA Overreach?
West Virginia and 24 other states, trying to stave off the potential economic disaster that looms if the EPA’s Clean Power Plan is implemented, have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene immediately to keep the regulations from being implemented.
Their action comes after the U.S. District Appeals Court based in Washington, D.C., refused to grant a stay, which would prevent the EPA from enacting the regulations until the states’ case has been heard in federal court.
The appeals court will hear the full challenge beginning June 2. However, the lengthy court proceeding could last a full six months or more from that point, meaning a decision might not happen until well into 2017.
Meanwhile, under the current regulations, the EPA can implement the plan.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is helping to lead the charge against the rules, saying they will do “irreparable harm.”
Morrisey and legal representatives from the other states contend the EPA plan is illegal and that allowing it to be implemented pending the full court decision will allow it to influence markets to the point of economic ruin for some.
“Without Supreme Court intervention, West Virginia and other states will suffer irreparable harm as job creators and state agencies spend untold resources to comply with a rule that is likely to be struck down as illegal,” Morrisey told The Associated Press. “Real people are hurting in West Virginia, and it’s my job to fight for them.”
Already, the plan’s negative impact can be seen in the many coal companies filing for bankruptcy or going out of business, as well as the country’s overall stagnant economy.
We understand that the concern to curtail climate change, saving this planet’s environment for future generations, is a legitimate issue.
However, we also know that implementing rules that have not been fully vetted to determine their potential effects, both positive and negative, is short-sighted and potentially ruinous.
The Clean Power Plan has not been adopted worldwide, meaning only the U.S. and perhaps a few other countries, will go to the lengths that the EPA wants to implement.
Meanwhile, other countries trying to catch the U.S. in economic and industrial strength will continue to burn fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas because it is more cost-effective.
That will put many U.S. companies depending on power at a competitive disadvantage, while ruining companies that deal in coal, oil and natural gas, which are mainstays in the West Virginia economy.
At a time when the U.S. has been able to tap into ample coal, oil and natural gas reserves, putting the country on the verge of energy independence, the current administration’s policies are keeping that from occurring.
We believe that energy independence, which is crucial to national security and economic success, as well as environmental protection, can both happen.
But that will only occur if all sides come to the table with the greater good in mind. We believe it can happen. Our country’s future depends on it.
See the article here.
- On January 28, 2016