Sixteen AGs Call on EPA to Withdraw Proposed Rollback of HFC Rule

Washington, D.C. — A multi-state coalition of 16 state attorneys general led by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey and California Attorney General Xavier Becerra submitted comments before yesterday’s deadline calling on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to withdraw its proposed rule rolling back appliance-maintenance and leak-repair standards for refrigerants. The attorneys general also called on the EPA to drop its proposal to delay compliance deadlines for the 2016 Obama-era rule the rollback would replace, noting that the Agency has “failed to provide any lawful basis” for its proposed delay.

In their comments, the AGs questioned the legal reasoning behind the Agency’s proposed rule and noted that, if finalized, the rollback would lead to an increase in emissions of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)—a powerful greenhouse gas, and the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. The multi-state coalition also noted that, according to the EPA’s own analysis, the proposed rule provides only modest compliance cost savings to industry, and the Agency has failed to provide a plausible rationale for disregarding the proposed rule’s significant costs to the public.

“This is yet another wrongheaded effort by the Trump Administration that would endanger the climate and pollute our air,” said Attorney General Healey. “We are calling on the EPA to withdraw this destructive plan.”

Citing the most recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change calling for immediate action to reduce HFC emissions to mitigate the most severe risks of climate change, the attorneys general noted that climate change is already having catastrophic effects on their states. Each AG provided analysis concerning the negative impacts their respective states are currently experiencing as a result of climate change, with California calling attention to the fact that the Camp Fire in Northern California burned more than 140,000 acres and killed at least 56 people as the comments were being drafted. Massachusetts noted that it is projected to experience between 4.0 and 7.6 feet of sea level rise by 2100 due to climate change based on current climate models.

“EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s proposal to rollback regulations that protect against global warming should be immediately withdrawn,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Wheeler has once again abdicated the EPA’s mission to protect human health and the environment, by failing to oversee the use of harmful chemicals that will dramatically increase emissions and accelerate climate change. I demand that Wheeler act in the best interest of the public he is tasked to serve and immediately withdraw this illegal proposal.”

The multi-state coalition has called the proposed rule “arbitrary and capricious,” noting that the EPA has “failed to examine the relevant data and articulate a satisfactory explanation for its action.” The coalition concluded that the proposed rule lacks a “rational connection between the facts found and the choice made.” If finalized, the Agency will need to somehow establish that its rollback does not violate the Administrative Procedure Act, an area where the Trump administration has struggled to defend its environmental deregulatory agenda in court.

“This proposed rule is yet another example of the Trump administration seeking to roll back a well-crafted Obama-era regulation while failing to address or, in some cases, even acknowledge the administrative record that was left behind,” said Elizabeth Klein, Deputy Director of the State Energy & Environmental Impact Center. “State attorneys general have once again effectively identified a number of flaws with the EPA’s reasoning and will continue to challenge this Administration’s misguided efforts to weaken bedrock environmental laws.”

In addition to Massachusetts and California, attorneys general of Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Washington, D.C. joined the multi-state coalition. The State of Minnesota also joined in submitting the coalition comments through its Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

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About the State Energy & Environmental Impact Center:
The State Energy & Environmental Impact Center at NYU School of Law is a nonpartisan academic center at NYU School of Law. The Center is dedicated to working towards a healthy and safe environment, guided by inclusive and equitable principles. The Center studies and supports the work of state attorneys general (AGs) in defending, enforcing, and promoting strong laws and policies in the areas of climate, environmental justice, environmental protection, and clean energy.