A coalition of government bodies from eight states around the country has sued the Trump Administration, claiming that the U.S. DOT unlawfully suspended an emissions accounting rule.
"A coalition of eight states has filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s decision to suspend a federal clean transportation rule," according to a post by Amanda Klein for the NRDC.
At the center of the legal controversy is the Greenhouse Gas Performance Measure, enacted in January as part of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) Act. The measure "would require state departments of transportation to benchmark and measure on-road greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within their jurisdictions, and set locally appropriate targets for GHG emissions reductions on national highways," according to Klein. For more on the potential benefits of the measure, see additional commentary from Angie Schmitt.
The Trump Administration decided to suspend the rule created by the measure, which the lawsuit's plaintiff's claim is in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.
According to Klein, the new lawsuit is similar to a suit brought forward by environmental groups like the NRDC, Clean Air Carolina, and US PIRG in July. Transportation has become a larger focus of environmental legal controversy. Several cities and counties in California have also launched lawsuits against the oil industry, arguing that fossil fuel interests knowingly neglected the impacts of climate change and sea level rise on coastal communities.
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