US states sue Trump over his move to scrap greenhouse gases ruling
Why it matters: This legal battle will shape US climate policy, impacting emissions regulations and the energy transition.
- 23 states and 17 cities/counties, including New York City and Los Angeles, have filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's repeal of the 2009 'endangerment finding' regarding greenhouse gases.
- President Trump has framed the climate change rollback as a major achievement, calling it a victory over the Democratic Party's 'radical' energy and climate policies, and has previously labeled climate change a 'hoax'.
- New York State Attorney General Letitia James argues the Trump administration's decision ignores the reality of the climate crisis and repeals critical protections foundational to the federal government's response.
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) describes the lawsuit as 'clearly motivated by politics' and asserts that the 2009 finding does not grant it statutory authority to set motor vehicle emission standards for global climate change concerns.
- Former President Barack Obama sharply rebuked Trump's decision, stating it will make the US 'less safe, less healthy and less able to fight climate change' for the benefit of the fossil fuel industry.
Three dozen US states and local governments are suing the Trump administration over its repeal of a landmark 2009 ruling that declared greenhouse gases a threat to public health, a move the administration touts as a victory against 'radical' climate policies. This legal challenge, mirroring a similar lawsuit by environmental groups, argues the repeal violates the Clean Air Act and ignores the urgent reality of climate change, while the EPA dismisses it as politically motivated.
