Yahoo Movies Supreme Court Limits Power of EPA, Thwarting Biden Administration's Ability to Combat Climate Change
Getty Coal fired power plant
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 along ideological lines Thursday that the Environmental Protection Agency does not have the authority to regulate carbon emissions from existing power plants.
The ruling in West Virginia v. the Environmental Protection Agency is an indication that the EPA — the agency tasked with protecting human health and the environment — could see its powers severely limited.
A dissenting opinion penned by Justice Elena Kagan begins with, "Today, the Court strips the Environmental Protection Agency of the power Congress gave it to respond to 'the most pressing environmental challenge of our time.'"
The White House has long argued that the Clean Air Act gives the EPA broad powers to regulate emissions, though many Republican lawmakers have argued the opposite: that the federal government has no authority to regulate power plants and only Congress should decide on questions of significant political or economic importance.
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Unlike many cases that come before the court, this one wasn't based on a rule already in place, but will instead set a precedent for future actions, effectively handing the authority to regulate air pollution to a divided Congress.
The move comes as the Biden administration has set ambitious goals for reducing carbon emissions and as scientists worldwide warn about the continued pace of climate change.
Last April, the White House announced a goal for the United States to achieve a 50-52% reduction in net greenhouse gas from 2005 levels by 2030. The goal, the Biden administration said at the time, included reducing carbon pollution from industrial sources.
RELATED: Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade, Eliminating the Constitutional Right to Abortion
The new ruling is the latest in a string of high-profile rulings by the Supreme Court, which earlier this month sent shockwaves throughout the country after it overturned landmark abortion-rights case Roe v. Wade.
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While that and other recent rulings have led some activists and Democrats to call for an expansion of the court the White House has signaled President Joe Biden is opposed.
"That is something that the president does not agree with," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre recently told reporters when asked about Biden's opinion on expanding the court. "That is not something that he wants to do."
