New York Attorney General Letitia James has launched a lawsuit alongside a coalition of 25 states and cities against the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), seeking to block the federal repeal of greenhouse gas emission limits for power plants.
The coalition filed its petition in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, challenging the agency’s decision to strike down the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards. The repealed regulations required domestic power generation facilities to lower emissions through the integration of carbon capture and storage technology.
Participants in the legal action include attorneys general from California and Michigan. Alongside seeking to strike down the repeal, the coalition notified the EPA of its intent to sue over the agency’s ongoing failure to regulate carbon pollution from existing natural gas-fired power plants.
Power generation remains the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States after transportation, accounting for approximately one-quarter of total national carbon dioxide output.
Attorney General Letitia James stated that rolling back environmental protections compromises public health and weakens federal oversight of major industrial polluters.
The legal challenge asserts that the EPA revoked the pollution standards without evaluating reasonable regulatory alternatives or accounting for the economic, health, and environmental costs associated with higher atmospheric emissions.
