Posted on 06/29/2015 8:36:41 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
A divided Supreme Court on Monday dealt a significant blow to the Obama administration's environmental agenda, invalidating a rule that would limit the release of mercury and other pollutants from power plants.
In a 5-4 ruling, the Court found that the Environmental Protection Agency did not appropriately consider the costs to utility companies when handing down the rule under the Clean Air Act.
"We hold that EPA interpreted unreasonably when it deemed cost irrelevant to the decision to regulate power plants," Justice Antonin Scalia wrote in the court's majority opinion.
Scalia was joined by the four conservative justices in his majority opinion, including the swing vote Justice Anthony Kennedy. The high court's four liberals dissented.
The challenge centered on new EPA regulations that would prohibit some plants from emitting toxic chemicals, including mercury. But industry groups and more than 20 states sued the federal government, arguing that the EPA did not adequately consider the costs to power plants before instituting the regulations.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
So they consider the cost and do it again. Pyrrhic victory.
Nothing an Executive Order can’t fix.
Not to worry.
He’s won plenty and we, as a nation, have lost plenty. Not enough for him. He’ll make up for it.
“The Supreme Court handed Obama a significant loss on one of his biggest environmental initiatives”
Like he cares...he got everything ELSE he wanted
I am surprised Roberts didn’t swing and sway. He swings both ways; and often swings left when his vote will make a difference.
Notice once again how the decision came down — 5 to 4.
This Republic is hanging by a thread with 2 INCONSISTENT Justices deciding depending on which side of the bed they happen to wake up that morning.
Exactly what I was thinking. The issue should be why does the EPA get this power? These rules should go through congress and then signed into law via the President. The EPA and the Courts are circumventing congress.
"As IF I really care...I'll re-write the rules, delete a paragraph, and add a few caveats. Better yet, I'll have momma Valerie call a few of the investors in these big power companies. No problem. If I can't regulate the American people into energy poverty, I'll have big business "voluntarily" do it. Just like my Death Panels, support for homosexual behaviour, and illegals aliens."
They don't even need to read the briefs. They are there to vote, and that's what they do.
“JUSTICE KAGAN, with whom JUSTICE GINSBURG, JUSTICE BREYER, and JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR join, dissenting.”.
As usual, the four hard-left justices voted the leftist position without any consideration for the Constitution or for the rule of law. I no longer have any respect for the Supreme Court, so I expected that politicized result.
Congress voted to give up the power to be the issuer of environmental regulations back in the 1970's. Cannot have politics interfere with the protection of mother Gaia you know.
Correct assessment.
That shouldn’t bind future congress though. The executive branch needs to be constrained. Reminds me of the fall of the roman empire when Caesar took all the power and the Senate was just a club for rich men.
They did consider the costs and they determined that the costs would cause the power plants to shut down.
In this particular case Congress amended the clean air act in 1990 to regulate sulfur, Mercury and other toxics.
The got the sulfur regulations pretty quick but they have been working on mercury and other toxics for 25 years. Clinton moved the ball downfield, Bush moved it the other direction, and now Obama. You can do a google search on history of mercury and other toxics and find all the milestones.
Quite a few states have already implemented this. And since this was implemented, possibly others will follow thru even though SCOTUS shot it down.
> These rules should go through congress and then signed into law via the President. The EPA and the Courts are circumventing congress.
No law passed by Congress created the EPA; it was an executive order.
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