Court Gives Texas Temporary Greenhouse Gas Reprieve

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit temporarily blocked EPA's plan to strip the state of GHG permitting authority. The court agreed to an emergency request by Texas officials to stay "pending further order of the court" EPA's plan to take over GHG permitting responsibility from the TCEQ.

According to the judges:

"The purpose of this administrative stay is to give the court sufficient opportunity to consider the merits of the emergency motion for a stay and should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits of that motion,"

They directed EPA to respond to Texas' request by Thursday and for Texas officials to file any reply to that response one day later. Just before Christmas, as it announced new GHG rules, EPA also said it planned to assume responsibility for Texas' greenhouse gas-related permitting January 2. Texas AG Greg Abbott and Gov. Rick Perry have been on an anti-EPA rampage lately, filed several lawsuits to block EPA action against Texas. The recent stay came a day after a New Orleans-based federal appeal court rejected Texas's request to stall the agency's plans. (Frank Maisano)