Feds Drop Appeal on Greenhouse Gas Rule

With a new administration in place, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) dropped its appeal of a case involving greenhouse gas measurement. 

FHWA abandoned the appeal in a filing with the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which granted the dismissal on Feb. 3, court documents show. The original appeal, filed in May 2024 by the Biden administration, fought back against a lower court decision in April 2024 that the greenhouse gas rule was “arbitrary and capricious and exceeds the agency’s statutory authority.” 

Finalized in November 2023, the rule required each state’s transportation department to set emission reduction targets but didn’t set a mandatory minimum. 

Sean Duffy, the new transportation secretary, stated that “the rescission reflects the administration’s commitment to unleashing American energy and eliminating unlawful regulatory burdens.”