U.S. Supreme Court ruling limits EPA’s authority in regulating greenhouse gases

The San Miguel Electric Cooperative’s coal-burning plant is shown in 2019. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency does not have broad authority to require states to decarbonize their electricity sectors. (Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune)

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Environmental Protection Agency does not have broad authority to require states to decarbonize their electricity sectors, a decision that is expected to dramatically slow the United States’ ability to reduce greenhouse gases and mitigate the effects of climate change.

The court’s 6-3 ruling on a case sparked by Texas and 16 other states — which addressed an Obama-era regulation aimed at coal-fired power plants, one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the nation — was a blow to President Joe Biden’s plan to reduce U.S. emissions and meet the country’s goals under international agreements.