June 27, 2012

The D.C. Circuit's Rulings on EPA's Greenhouse Gas Rulemakings

Co-sponsored by:
The Environmental Law Institute
ABA SEER's Climate Change, Sustainable Development, and Ecosystems Committee
DC Bar's Environment, Energy and Natural Resources Section
International Emissions Trading Association
Georgetown Climate Center

In February 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held two days of oral argument to review four of EPA’s greenhouse gas emissions rules: The "Timing" Rule, The "Tailoring" Rule, The "Endangerment" Rule, and The "Tailpipe" Rule.

These four rules are EPA’s response to Massachusetts v. EPA and represent the bedrock of EPA’s regulation of greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act (CAA). When the court ruled on those hearings, a panel was convened to discuss the rulings and their potential effects on industry, the environment, and the future of federal greenhouse gas regulation.

Panelists:
John Cruden, President, Environmental Law Institute (moderator)
William Brownell, Partner, Hunton & Williams LLP
David Doniger, Policy Director, Climate & Clean Air Program, NRDC
Tim Profeta, Founding Director, Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Duke University

Materials:
Court Opinion
Flowchart highlighting the issues before the D.C. Circuit and some of the potential outcomes. This chart, originally published in May 2012, has been annotated to indicate the D.C. Circuit's June 26th decision with references to pages within the decision.
mp3 recording