Journal of Environmental Law & Litigation : Vol. 22, No. 2, p. 301-312 : Massachusetts v. EPA
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Date
2007
Authors
Heinzerling, Lisa
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon Law School
Abstract
On April 2, 2007, the United States Supreme Court issued its
much-anticipated decision in Massachusetts v. Environmental
Protection Agency (E.P.A.).1 By a vote of 5-4, the Court decided
all of the issues presented in the case in favor of the states and
other parties that had challenged the decision of the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) refusing to regulate greenhouse
gas emissions from motor vehicles.2 The Court held that:
the states and other petitioners met the constitutional requirements
for pursuing their claims in federal court;3 the federal
Clean Air Act gives the EPA authority to regulate greenhouse gases;4 and the EPA could not refuse to exercise this authority by
citing policy considerations not enumerated in the statute5 or by
referring generally to the scientific uncertainty remaining with
respect to climate change.6 On each issue, the Court broke new
legal ground. The implications of the Court’s decision for other
cases involving climate change are likely to be enormous.
Description
12 p.
A print copy of this title is available through the UO Libraries under the call number: LAW LIB. K 10 .O425
Keywords
Citation
22 J. ENVTL. L. & LITIG. 301 (2007)