Plain-English summary
Court says challenges to EPA disapprovals of state ozone plans belong in regional federal appeals courts
The Supreme Court held that EPA’s 2023 disapprovals of Oklahoma’s and Utah’s state plans to implement national ozone standards are “locally or regionally applicable” and therefore may be reviewed in the regional U.S. Courts of Appeals under the Clean Air Act. The Court reversed the Tenth Circuit and remanded the cases for further proceedings in the appropriate regional courts.
Why this matters
This decision determines which federal appeals court hears challenges to EPA decisions rejecting or partially rejecting state air-quality plans. That procedural choice matters because it can affect the timing, forum, and precedent governing disputes between states and the EPA about how to meet national air-quality standards.
Who may feel it
- State governments that submit or revise State Implementation Plans (SIPs)
- Environmental Protection Agency and its enforcement programs
- Industries and utilities regulated under state air plans (e.g., power plants, refineries)
- Residents in states affected by ozone and air-quality regulation
- Environmental and industry advocacy groups that litigate EPA actions
Key questions
- Are EPA’s disapprovals of individual states’ State Implementation Plans "locally or regionally applicable" under the Clean Air Act’s judicial-review provision?