WCBC

September 26th, 2016 by WCBC Radio

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey will lead a broad coalition into court for its fight against President Obama’s job killing and unlawful Power Plan.
 
The Attorney General will join 27 states and state agencies, along with a strong coalition of labor unions, consumer groups, businesses, utilities and coal companies in arguments against the Environmental Protection Agency.
 
Oral arguments are set to begin at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday in Washington. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, demonstrating the significance of the case, decided in May to hold arguments before the full court as opposed to the typical three-judge panel.
 
“This will be a monumental day for West Virginia,” Attorney General Morrisey said. “This is West Virginia’s biggest court case in years. Our arguments are critical to protecting coal.”
 
West Virginia and its bipartisan coalition arrive in Washington having achieved a first major victory thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court’s historic and unprecedented stay of the Power Plan in February. That decision blocked enforcement of the rule until the coalition’s court challenge concludes.
 
The coalition will argue EPA exceeded its congressional authority by transforming the nation’s energy industry, double regulating coal-fired power plants and forcing states to fundamentally shift their energy portfolios away from coal-fired generation.
 
Furthermore, the coalition will argue the U.S. Constitution prohibits any attempt by the federal government to commandeer and coerce the states into carrying out federal law.
 
West Virginia and Texas led most other states in challenging the EPA’s Power Plan on Oct. 23, 2015, the very day it was published.
 
West Virginia and Texas are joined in the challenge by Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming, along with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality and other state agencies.