Critics Charge EPA Lacks Legal Justification For CSAPR ‘Close-Out’ Rule

Several states and environmental groups seeking stricter EPA policies to curb interstate ozone air pollution are urging a federal appellate court to scrap the agency’s rule to “close-out” its major cross-border air trading program without requiring additional ozone cuts from states, saying EPA lacks legal justification for the rule. In opening briefs filed April 19, the states and environmentalists claim the agency unlawfully ignored Clean Air Act compliance deadlines and overestimated expected future cuts in ozone pollution when it finalized...