Posting Key Briefs in the SAFE Rule Preemption Case

The case, called Union of Concerned Scientists v. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, pits the State of California and its allies (petitioners) against the Trump administration and its allies (respondents). Petitioners are asking the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to vacate the administration’s One National Program Rule, which is also Part 1 of the Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule.

A joint product of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the One National Program Rule finalize two actions related to California’s tailpipe greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards and zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) standards:

• NHTSA finalizes regulatory text clarifying that the California standards are substantially and directly related to federal fuel economy standards and, thus, are prohibited by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA); and,
• EPA announces its decision to withdraw portions of the Clean Air Act preemption waiver it provided to California in 2013, which had allowed the State to adopt and enforce those standards.

The main briefs filed in the case, as of this week, are:

• Petitioners’ Opening Brief (filed June 26, 2020),
• The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Reply Brief (filed September 9, 2020), and
• Petitioners’ Reply Brief (filed October 13, 2020).

Final briefs are due on October 27. I will post those after they have been filed.