Westmoreland Mining Holdings, LLC v. Environmental Protection Agency

Consolidated with:

Linked with:

North Dakota v. Environmental Protection Agency

Docket No.	Op. Below	Argument	Opinion	Vote	Author	Term
20-1778	D.C. Cir.	Feb 28, 2022	Jun 30, 2022	6-3	Roberts	OT 2021

Holding: Congress did not grant the Environmental Protection Agency in Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act the authority to devise emissions caps based on the generation shifting approach the agency took in the Clean Power Plan.

Judgment: Reversed and remanded, 6-3, in an opinion by Chief Justice Roberts on June 30, 2022. Justice Gorsuch filed a concurring opinion, in which Justice Alito joined. Justice Kagan filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justices Breyer and Sotomayor joined.

SCOTUSblog Coverage

Justices agree to review EPAs authority to regulate greenhouse gases (Amy Howe, October 29, 2021)
No new relists, but you should read anyway (John Elwood, October 27, 2021)
Foreign intelligence surveillance and immigration (John Elwood, October 14, 2021)
Free exercise, greenhouse-gas regulation, and a slew of other relists from the long conference (John Elwood, October 5, 2021)

Date	Proceedings and Orders (key to color coding)
06/18/2021	Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due July 23, 2021)
06/25/2021	Blanket Consent filed by Petitioner, Westmoreland Mining Holdings LLC
07/22/2021	Motion to extend the time to file a response from July 23, 2021 to August 5, 2021, submitted to The Clerk.
07/22/2021	Brief amicus curiae of The Cato Institute filed.
07/23/2021	Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including August 5, 2021, for all respondents.
08/05/2021	Brief of respondents Consolidated Edison, Inc., Exelon Corporation, National Grid USA, New York Power Authority, Power Companies Climate Coalition, and Sacramento Municipal Utility District in opposition filed. VIDED.
08/05/2021	Brief of respondents Non-Governmental Organization and Trade Association Respondents in opposition filed. VIDED.
08/05/2021	Brief of respondents Federal respondents in opposition filed. VIDED.
08/05/2021	Brief of respondents States and Municipalities in opposition filed. VIDED.
08/24/2021	Reply of petitioner Westmoreland Mining Holdings LLC filed. (Distributed)
08/25/2021	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 9/27/2021.
10/04/2021	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/8/2021.
10/12/2021	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/15/2021.
10/25/2021	DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 10/29/2021.
10/29/2021	Petition GRANTED limited to Question 2 presented by the petition. The petitions for writs of certiorari in No. 20-1530, No. 20-1531, and No. 20-1780 are granted. The cases are consolidated, and a total of one hour is allotted for oral argument. The motion of Lignite Energy Council for leave to file a brief as amicus curiae in No. 20-1780 is granted. VIDED.
11/04/2021	Because the Court has consolidated these cases for briefing and oral argument, future filings and activity in the cases will now be reflected on the docket of No. 20-1530. Subsequent filings in these cases must therefore be submitted through the electronic filing system in No. 20-1530. Each document submitted in connection with one or more of these cases must include on its cover the case number and caption for each case in which the filing is intended to be submitted. Where a filing is submitted in fewer than all of the cases, the docket entry will reflect the case number(s) in which the filing is submitted; a document filed in all of the consolidated cases will be noted as “VIDED.”
12/17/2021	ARGUMENT SET FOR Monday, February 28, 2022. VIDED.
12/21/2021	Record requested from the U.S.C.A. District of Columbia Circuit.
12/23/2021	The record from the U.S.C.A. District of Columbia Circuit is electronic and located on Pacer. The oral argument transcript has been electronically filed.
01/18/2022	CIRCULATED
02/28/2022	Argued. For state petitioners: Lindsay S. See, Solicitor General, Charleston, W. Va. For private petitioners: Jacob M. Roth, Washington, D. C. For federal respondents: Elizabeth B. Prelogar, Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. For power company respondents: Beth S. Brinkmann, Washington, D. C. VIDED.
06/30/2022	Judgment REVERSED and case REMANDED. Roberts, C. J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, JJ., joined. Gorsuch, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Alito, J., joined. Kagan, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Breyer and Sotomayor, JJ., joined. VIDED.
08/01/2022	JUDGMENT ISSUED