Senate Republicans are seeking to overturn a court ruling that blocked the Trump administration from using a fast-track congressional procedure to dismantle California’s increasingly stringent vehicle emissions standards, which have influenced regulations across a large part of the United States.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), joined by Republicans including Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), argued in a court filing on Nov. 4 that a federal judge overstepped her authority by preventing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from referring California’s emissions waivers to Congress for possible repeal.
The dispute centers on California’s special exemption under the Clean Air Act, which allows it to impose stricter emissions requirements on vehicles than those set by the federal government. Other states can adopt identical standards to California, giving the state’s regulations influence far beyond its own borders. …