AUSTIN — Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation filed an amicus brief in support of a petition asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Environmental Protection Agency’s hasty revisions to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
The Clean Air Act requires the EPA to conduct a thorough scientific review of the NAAQS every five years. In 2023, the Biden administration conducted an off-cycle review that led to a 25% tightening of the standard for a specific particulate matter. TPPF’s brief argues the EPA did not fulfill the Clean Air Act’s requirements. Instead, the EPA focused on a narrow set of recent studies while failing to consider other peer-reviewed research challenging the assumptions behind the standard in question.
“EPA tightened the NAAQS PM2.5 standard because it ignored peer-reviewed data that was not consistent with its predetermined result,” said TPPF Senior Attorney Ted Hadzi-Antich. “That is the epitome of bad science. Just as importantly, it’s not authorized by the Clean Air Act.”
“Our system rests on the presumption that administrative agencies are going to pay attention to the information that’s out there before making decisions. EPA admitted that it didn’t do that here,” said TPPF Attorney Laura Beth Latimer. “And unless the Supreme Court steps in, the effect on the economy could be disastrous.”
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