CHARLESTON — West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey led a bipartisan coalition of 22 states, along with unions and trade associations, in two briefs supporting the repeal of the Obama-era Clean Power Plan and expressing support for the Trump administration’s replacement Affordable Clean Energy rule.
The dual briefs were filed recently in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
The coalitions argue that the Affordable Clean Energy rule stops the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from reaching into areas beyond its control such as energy production – a far cry from the overbroad powers the agency would have had under the Obama-era Power Plan.
“The so-called Clean Power Plan was an example of gross federal overreach by a bureaucracy run amok, and in West Virginia, it sounded a death knell for coal mining,” Attorney General Morrisey said. “We applaud the Trump administration for replacing that rule with one that better takes into account the rights of states to control energy production and emissions within their borders.”
The coalitions believe the Affordable Clean Energy rule will respect the important role of states in regulating energy and air quality. It embraces Congress’ intent for cooperation between the state and federal governments, correcting the Obama-era one-size-fits-all model that promised to devastate coal communities across the state and nation.
Attorney General Morrisey challenged the Obama-era Clean Power Plan on the day it was published, blocked its enforcement with a historic and unprecedented victory at the Supreme Court and has continued to lead a broad coalition to ensure its repeal.
West Virginia’s historic victory at the Supreme Court stopped the Obama-era regulation in its tracks and provided time for a new administration to correct the attempted overreach of its predecessor.
In 2017, the Attorney General witnessed President Trump sign an executive order that initiated his administration’s review of the Clean Power Plan and later spoke in support of its repeal during a public hearing at the State Capitol in Charleston.
West Virginia joined the briefs with attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wyoming and the governors of Kentucky and Mississippi.
Read a copy of the West Virginia-led brief supporting repeal of the Clean Power Plan at https://bit.ly/2Ww5qXF, as well as the brief supporting the Affordable Clean Energy rule at https://bit.ly/2ZAtPxc.