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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009
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Auto-Emission Ruling Boosts States' Rights

Federal judge rules against carmakers on standards for greenhouse gases

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(Newser) – Vermont can set its own greenhouse emissions standards to curb gases that contribute to global warming, a federal judge ruled yesterday in a decision that boosts states’ rights. Automakers sued the state after it adopted standards originally made law in California, saying the regulations were impractical and would upend the industry, the Times reports.

The judge said it was “improbable” that automakers couldn’t adapt and dismissed claims that Vermont usurped federal authority. One law professor called the ruling a “sweeping rejection” of automakers’ efforts to limit states’ rights on emission standards. California faces its own legal battle with the industry, but the Vermont ruling improves the Golden State’s chances of victory, analysts say.

A car gives off exhaust in Montpelier, Vt., Monday, March 2, 2007. Vermont is a big winner in two major environmental decisions handed down today by the U.S. Supreme Court. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas linked to global climate change, but the Environmental Protection Agency had been resisting...
A car gives off exhaust in Montpelier, Vt., Monday, March 2, 2007. Vermont is a big winner in two major environmental decisions handed down today by the U.S. Supreme Court. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse...   (Associated Press)
Charles Territo of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers talks to the press in front of Federal Court in Burlington, Vt., Tuesday, April 10, 2007. A federal court trial over whether states have the authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles got under way Tuesday, with a lawyer for automakers...
Charles Territo of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers talks to the press in front of Federal Court in Burlington, Vt., Tuesday, April 10, 2007. A federal court trial over whether states have the...   (Associated Press)
Christopher Kilian of the Conservation Law Foundation, left, and James Moore of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group hold a news conference in front of Federal Court in Burlington, Vt., Tuesday, April 10, 2007. Standing in front of a Ford compact SUV, they say states should have a say in...
Christopher Kilian of the Conservation Law Foundation, left, and James Moore of the Vermont Public Interest Research Group hold a news conference in front of Federal Court in Burlington, Vt., Tuesday,...   (Associated Press)
Christopher Kilian of the Conservation Law Foundation looks at the engine of an SUV prior to a news conference in front of Federal Court in Burlington, Vt., Tuesday, April 10, 2007. Standing in front of a Ford compact SUV, Kilian says states should have a say in regulating carbon dioxide...
Christopher Kilian of the Conservation Law Foundation looks at the engine of an SUV prior to a news conference in front of Federal Court in Burlington, Vt., Tuesday, April 10, 2007. Standing in front...   (Associated Press)
U.S. District Court Judge William Sessions III is seen in Burlington, Vt., in this Aug. 30, 2006, file photo. Sessions on Wednesday Sept. 12, 2007, ruled that states can regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, rejecting automakers' claims that the rules are pre-empted by federal law and that technology...
U.S. District Court Judge William Sessions III is seen in Burlington, Vt., in this Aug. 30, 2006, file photo. Sessions on Wednesday Sept. 12, 2007, ruled that states can regulate greenhouse gas emissions...   (Associated Press)
A truck spews exhaust in Montpelier, Vt., Monday, March 2, 2007. A federal judge in Vermont on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2007, has rejected automakers' claims that new state emissions standards designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are pre-empted by federal law and that technology can't be developed to meet them....
A truck spews exhaust in Montpelier, Vt., Monday, March 2, 2007. A federal judge in Vermont on Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2007, has rejected automakers' claims that new state emissions standards designed to...   (Associated Press)
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