TREE NEWS update: Judge Beryl Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency must withdraw its decision to reclassify two Clean Air Act waivers granted to California as “rules” rather than “orders.” The order requires the EPA to “retract or correct” the move and all public statements about it, and bars the agency from letting the reclassification take effect. The ruling comes as Congress advances votes under the Congressional Review Act to overturn the waivers, with House votes scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday.
Judge Orders EPA to Withdraw Reclassification of California Clean Air Act Waivers
The ruling is less about California's waivers themselves than about how the EPA characterizes its own decisions, since the rule-versus-order distinction shapes which challenges and procedures apply. By forcing a retraction and barring the reclassification from taking effect, the court preserves the prior legal footing while the Congressional Review Act track proceeds separately. The two paths now run in parallel, and whether the legislative route advances regardless of the court's action is the open question worth watching.
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