Fossil fuel groups ask SCOTUS to overturn California’s clean car waiver

By Lesley Clark | 07/02/2024 06:20 AM EDT

EPA allows California to set tougher emissions standards, which 17 other states have also adopted.

Traffic moves along the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles.

Traffic moves along the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles on Nov. 22, 2022. Jae C. Hong/AP

Fossil fuel interests want the Supreme Court to review California’s authority to set stricter emissions standards for cars and trucks than the federal government.

A petition to be filed Tuesday asks the high court to overturn an April ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The judges unanimously ruled that industry groups and a coalition of Republican-led states had failed to show that a favorable ruling would fix the injuries they claimed from California’s waiver.

The petitioners to the Supreme Court include the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM), the Domestic Energy Producers Alliance, Energy Marketers of America, the National Association of Convenience Stores, and a number of biofuel and agricultural organizations.

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They argue that the D.C. Circuit — which found that the challengers lacked standing to bring their claim — failed to consider the substance of the case. The challengers ask the Supreme Court to review the merits and find that California’s waiver does not empower the state to regulate vehicle greenhouse gas emissions, impose electric vehicle mandates or limit consumer access to internal combustion engines.

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