The road ahead for nondelegation

Supreme Court watchers are keeping an eye on an interesting case that is under consideration from the US Supreme Court. The case, WV v EPA, is a challenge of greenhouse gas regulations under the unmbrella of the Clean Air Act. The case being considered is actually looking at 4 different lawsuits that have been cosolidated into a single SCOTUS decision, so it could get complicated as it accounts for subtle diffrences in the cases. Or, the court could decide not to decide, since the original Obama-era regulations are no longer in play. But, some are waiting ot see whether the court uses this as a time to make sweeping changes in the how governmental regulations function. 

Some of the analyses (and guesses) about what will happen are pretty complicated, technical, and tough to follow for readers who don't already know about Chevron deference and nondelegation. Add to it some rhetoric (from either side) and the reading can be fraught. Even the WV v EPA Wikipedia page is getting lengthy, and the case hasn't been heard yet. But I thought Leslie Kaufman's recent update did a good job of introducing some of the pieces:

“There is a possibility that the court can write an opinion,” says Michael Burger, executive director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University, “that really reflects a core challenge to the fundamental basis of the regulatory state — for the ways in which our federal bureaucracy or federal agencies have evolved and operate.” In other words, if the Supreme Court applies the most conservative interpretation of the constitutional challenge, it could entirely knock out the system by which we protect air and water in the U.S. — not to mention scores of other federal laws.

Assuming that the oral arguments really happen, the news will be interesting to read the next day. Watchers will keep a particularly close eye on the comments and questions from Justice Gorsuch whose mother had a difficult time as EPA Administrator.