Maryland Joins Lawsuit Over EPA Power Plant Pollution Rule
State of MD - Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has joined a group of 25 states, counties and cities in a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's administration. The suit challenges a decision by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to repeal limits on greenhouse gas emissions from many large power plants.
The EPA repealed the rules in September of 2026. They were known as the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards and applied to many coal-fired and gas-fired power plants.
Brown and the group filed a petition for review in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. They are asking the court to strike down the repeal and bring the protections back.
According to the group, power plants produce about one-quarter of the nation's carbon dioxide emissions. They also say the federal government has proposed ending power plant emission rules entirely.
"By dismantling these protections, the Trump Administration will force Marylanders to endure more dangerous floods, face deadlier heat waves, and breathe more toxic wildfire smoke," said Attorney General Brown. "We are filing this lawsuit not just to protect Maryland today, but to protect the Maryland our loved ones will inherit tomorrow."
The group says more pollution can lead to stronger heat waves, heavier flooding and more wildfire smoke. They say these changes put children, older adults and workers at risk.
The group also says pollution from power plants can make asthma, heart disease and other breathing illnesses worse. They say low-income and overburdened communities are hit hardest because more of these plants are located there.
State and local governments are also part of the concern. The group says they must spend billions of dollars to recover from extreme weather.
The group also filed a notice of intent to sue the EPA over existing natural gas power plants. They say the agency has not fully regulated greenhouse gas pollution from many of these facilities.
Those plants include "peaker" plants, which often run when electricity demand is high. The group says many are in low-income communities and communities of color.
The EPA set standards for new gas plants more than a decade ago. The group says the agency has never set limits for the existing ones, as the Clean Air Act requires.
Joining Attorney General Brown are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai?i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. The governor of Pennsylvania, the mayors of New York City and Chicago, and the City and County of Denver are also part of the lawsuit.
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