Supreme Court Rejects GOP-Led States on Biden Climate Estimates
The US Supreme Court turned away an appeal by 12 Republican-led states, refusing to let them challenge the Biden administration’s use of estimates for the social cost of greenhouse gas emissions when issuing regulations. The high court without explanation or any published dissent left intact a federal appeals court ruling that the Missouri-led group of states hadn’t suffered the type of concrete injury that would give them legal standing to sue. The Biden formulas, developed by a White House working group, are designed to guide agencies as they weigh the climate consequences of proposed projects and consider the costs and benefits of new regulations. The calculations ultimately could have a broad impact, affecting oil and gas leases as well as regulations covering agriculture, power plants, construction and fuel-efficiency standards. The administration is currently using interim numbers amid The Supreme Court previously The case is Missouri v. Biden, 22-1248. To contact the reporter on this story: gstohr@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: ewasserman2@bloomberg.net © 2023 Bloomberg L.P. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
Related Knowledge Center: Air emissions
More than 30 years after the last major update of the Clean Air Act, the U.S. Supreme Court has upended the ability of Congress to give the Environmental Protection Agency and other federal agencies broad scope to combat air pollution, including the emission of greenhouse gases. Meanwhile, further Biden administration efforts to limit emissions face opposition in the courts.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”