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WASHINGTON, D.C. – In November 2023, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) adopted a final rule requiring state departments of transportation and metropolitan planning organizations to measure greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on the highway system and set declining targets. Congress has never granted the Department of Transportation this authority. 

Shortly after the rule was finalized, attorneys general from 21 states, including North Dakota, filed litigation challenging the regulation. The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky found the rule illegal, but the Biden FHWA appealed the decision to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. In October, U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee; U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Chairman of the Senate EPW Committee; U.S. Representatives Sam Graves (R-MO-6), Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; and Rick Crawford (R-AR-1), former Chairman of the House Highways and Transit Subcommittee, led their colleagues in filing an amicus brief in opposition to the rule.

Today, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed the case with prejudice at the request of the Trump administration, ending the year-long court battle. 

“This is really big news, and this dismissal reinforces the fundamental principle: federal agencies do not have authority Congress doesn’t grant them,” said Cramer. “The Biden Federal Highway Administration tried to pull a regulation out of thin air to pursue its radical, crazy, bizarro climate agenda, deliberately ignoring the legal boundaries of the law and our Constitution. States and my colleagues in Congress were right to push back against this unlawful mandate. I’m really grateful the Trump administration changed course and for the Court’s requisite dismissal.”

“The greenhouse gas emissions performance measure rule would have limited the flexibility of states to advance their own transportation investment priorities that meet the needs of their constituents,” said Capito. “The rule shifted the focus of the Federal-aid Highway Program away from building roads and bridges – jeopardizing jobs and undermining economic growth across the country. The decision from President Trump’s FHWA to end the previous administration’s attempt to continue this unlawful rule is an important step in reversing the extreme climate agenda of the past four years, and I’m thrilled that the court has now officially dismissed the appeal.”

The state of Texas also filed a separate suit against FHWA, and the District Court for the Northern District of Texas vacated the Biden rule. The Department of Transportation appealed the ruling. Cramer, Capito, Graves, and Crawford also led their colleagues in filing a separate bicameral amicus brief requesting the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals uphold the District Court decision.

Previously, Cramer led a bipartisan Congressional Review Act joint resolution of disapproval to overturn the rule. The resolution passed the Senate in April by a vote of 53 to 47, reiterating Congress’ opposition to FHWA’s overreach. In a speech on the Senate floor, Cramer committed to leading an amicus brief in support of overturning the rule in court.