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0:11-cv-03232
Minnesota
Constitutional - State Statute
Susan Richard Nelson
A recent ruling that a Minnesota emissions law effectively barring electricity use from new coal-fired power plants is unconstitutional is the latest example of the dormant Commerce Clause impeding states' ability to regulate climate change, and experts say such legal skirmishes will continue until the U.S. Supreme Court sets clear, constitutional boundaries for states' climate policies.
A Minnesota federal judge blocked the enforcement of a state emissions law that effectively barred the use of electricity from new coal-fired power plants, ruling Friday that the law, challenged by neighboring North Dakota, unconstitutionally restricts interstate commerce.
A stringent Minnesota emissions law blocking electricity from new coal-fired power plants is facing a vigorous court challenge from resource-rich neighbor North Dakota, and experts say the outcome will provide a blueprint for other states looking to enact their own greenhouse gas regulations.
North Dakota and several coal and electric companies sued Minnesota on Wednesday over a state emissions law they claim unconstitutionally restricts the importation of coal-generated electricity from one of the country's largest coal-energy supplier states.