Bush administration can be sued for skewing EPA laws

April 2, 2007

Washington, D.C. - Environmentalists and 12 states won a significant victory over the Bush administration at the Supreme Court over federal regulation of clean air standards.

Environmentalists and 12 states won a significant victory over the Bush administration at the Supreme Court over federal regulation of clean air standards.

In a 5-4 decision, the justices gave states the right to sue the Bush administration to force officials to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from new cars. And it ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to re-evaluate its conclusion that tailpipe emissions do not constitute a pollutant under the Clean Air Act, requiring federal regulation.

"Judged by any standard, U.S. motor-vehicle emissions make a meaningful contribution to greenhouse gas concentrations and hence, according to petitioners, to global warming," Justice John Paul Stevens concluded for the majority.

"EPA has offered no reasoned explanation for its refusal to decide whether greenhouse gases cause or contribute to climate change."

He was supported by Justices Anthony Kennedy, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Stephen Breyer.

Twelve states, led by Massachusetts, sued the Bush administration.