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Enron Mail |
Recent information indicates that the State of Michigan and possibly other
state and industrial parties who have challenged the EPA's NOx SIP Call regulation in court -- and lost -- will file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court this September. As you may recall, on June 22, the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit, upheld the EPA's NOx SIP Call regulations, lifted the stay on the regulations, and mandated that states move forward with developing and submitting State Implementation Plans (SIPs) by the end of October 2000. States that must now develop SIPs include: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin (Georgia, Missouri & Wisconsin were excluded from the regulation by the Appeals Court in its original decision, but will eventually be re-included in the SIP process) Impact of a Supreme Court Appeal: Parties appealing the case to the Supreme Court will likely ask for a stay of the EPA requirement for states to submit SIPs until the case is finally decided. It is not certain whether or not a stay would be granted by the Court. An appeal can not be filed until the Court returns at the beginning of October, and a decision on a stay might not come until after the October 30 SIP deadline, so it many states might proceed with developing their SIP anyway. States who choose to not develop a SIP and assume that a stay will be granted will be taking the risk that they miss the October 30 SIP deadline and EPA imposes its own Federal Implementation Plan (FIP) -- if the stay is not granted, the state would have to live with the federal requirements for NOx reductions in its state. Another impact is that the May 2003 deadline for implementation of the rule -- and compliance by emitting sources -- may also be delayed if the Supreme Court imposes a stay on the regulations and accepts the case on appeal. If the case is accepted, a decision would not likely be reached until June 2001, which would likely delay a compliance deadline until 2004. We will keep you posted as this situation develops. Right now, Environmental Strategies is continuing to work in the states that are developing SIPs, to ensure that the states treat new generation fairly and that market-based solutions to NOx reduction are employed so that trading and other opportunities for Enron businesses will be maximized. Contacts: Federal regulation, Court action -- Jeff Keeler 202-466-9157 State Implementation Plan development -- Mary Schoen 713-345-7422
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