As litigation over California’s Clean Air Act waivers moves forward, the outcome could have far-reaching implications for both the state’s longstanding authority to seek vehicle emissions waivers and the scope of judicial review over presidential actions. The case raises fundamental questions about the limits of executive power, administrative law and the future of state-led environmental policymaking.
“If the challengers lose, then I think the implication is that California’s ability to get waivers is going to be vastly diminished if not entirely done away with,” Bracewell’s Brittany Pemberton told Law360.
Among the arguments the court must weigh is whether the suit could have been brought in the first place.
“It’s not at all clear that an action of the president is reviewable,” Pemberton said. “The president is not an administrative agency, and it’s only administrative agencies whose actions can be reviewed under the Administrative Procedure Act, so that’s a big part of the fight that’s going on in the district court.”
