In July, the State of North Dakota filed suit in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit challenging U.S. EPA’s final rule amending the Agency’s 2012 New Source Performance Standards for the Oil and Gas Sector. Opposition to the amendments, which became effective on August 2, 2016, has increased significantly since North Dakota first filed suit. The state of Texas filed suit last week and, on the same day that the amendments became effective, a coalition of 14 states, including the State of Ohio filed suit alleging the final rule exceeds U.S. EPA’s authority under the Clean Air Act and requests that the Court vacate the rule. The Independent Petroleum Association of America, joined by several other industry groups, also filed suit on the same day.
The states and state agencies joining Ohio are Alabama, Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, the Michigan Attorney General’s office, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Wisconsin, West Virginia the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet and the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality.
The Court has ordered the Petitioners to file a statement of issues by September 1, 2016.