A coalition of 21 state and local governments filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging the Trump administration’s repeal of a 2024 rule that established limits for toxic air pollutants.

The regulation, known as the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards rule, limits emissions from coal- and oil-fired power plants. It covers pollutants including mercury, arsenic, lead and other toxic metals, as well as acid gases.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency updated the rule in 2024, which proponents of the rule said followed significant upgrades in pollution control technologies. But President Donald Trump’s administration repealed that updated standard last month. 

EPA said in a statement last month that it was repealing the rule “to ensure affordable, dependable energy for American families” and that it expected $670 million in regulatory compliance costs savings from lower costs of transportation, heating, utilities, farming and manufacturing, and more reliable energy. 

The coalition of states and local governments argues that the rollback is unlawful, saying the federal agency has failed to provide a reasoned basis for it or consider the new technologies. 

The states taking part in the lawsuit are Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin. The District of Columbia, New York City, Chicago and Harris County, Texas, also joined.

“Here, we have the Trump Administration once again acting recklessly and without good reason in rolling back important emissions standards that help mitigate the potentially disastrous health effects of toxic air pollutants associated with power plants like mercury and arsenic,” Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha, a Democrat, said in a statement. 

Stateline reporter Alex Brown can be reached at abrown@stateline.org.

New U.S. Environmental Protection Agency goals call for an all-time high volume of biofuels to be blended into gasoline and diesel, the agency said in a Friday news release following President Donald Trump’s announcement at the White House.

The EPA’s Renewable Fuel Standard for 2026 and 2027 will set the volume of biofuels at the highest level in the program’s 20 years, the agency said in a statement released shortly after Trump touted the move in a speech to farmers gathered at the White House South Lawn.

The president framed the new standards as a move away from regulations based on radical environmentalism.

“What they’ve done to you — and the country, what they’ve done to the country — is just incredible,” he told the farmers. “The environmentalists, I mean, they are terrorists. They were terrorists.”

Trump added that the standards will generate over $10 billion of rural economic benefit in rural areas and create an estimated 100,000 jobs. Biofuels are primarily produced from corn and soybean crops, with corn-derived ethanol by far the most common biofuel in the country.

Trump and top administration officials said the new standards would help provide more domestic energy sources. The standards would reduce the demand for foreign oil by approximately 300,000 barrels per day, the EPA release said.

“For 20 years, this program has diversified our nation’s energy supply and advanced American energy independence,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in the release. “EPA is proud to deliver on this mission and to do so at historic levels.”

The standards will require a roughly 60% increase in biofuel and renewable diesel production over 2025 levels, the EPA estimated. That production would translate directly to a major economic boost for farmers, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said.

“With President Trump and Administrator Zeldin’s leadership, these historically high volumes are expected to create a $3 to $4 billion dollar increase in net farm income,” she said in the EPA release. 

While biofuels groups commended the new standards, the Fueling American Jobs Coalition, an advocacy group that represents independent oil refiners, said the goals were “too aggressive” and did not reflect what could realistically be blended into transportation fuels.

“Unfortunately, with today’s announcement, it’s clear that our efforts to advocate for achievable volumes were ignored, and this will now likely result in even higher prices at the pump for consumers,” the group said.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will allow gas stations to sell a blended fuel containing 15% ethanol into the summer season in an effort to lower gas prices, Administrator Lee Zeldin said Wednesday.

The blend, known as E15,  is usually barred in many Midwest states over the summer to reduce smog, though the federal government has routinely in recent years issued waivers to allow summer sales. The move, which ethanol producers applauded, could prevent a spike in prices at the pump during the war with Iran that has scrambled oil markets.

“EPA is working with our federal partners to reduce unnecessary costs and uncertainty and ensure that gas prices remain affordable for all Americans through the summer,” Zeldin said in a statement. “This emergency action will provide American families with relief by increasing fuel supply and consumer choice.”

Bipartisan officials in corn-producing states had sought the waiver, and continue to push for year-round availability of the product. Ethanol is manufactured from corn and other plant materials.

Move wins praise from industry, officials 

Seven Midwestern governors — Republicans Kim Reynolds of Iowa, Mike Kehoe of Missouri, Jim Pillen of Nebraska and Larry Rhoden of South Dakota and Democrats Tim Walz of Minnesota, JB Pritzker of Illinois and Tony Evers of Wisconsin — signed a March 6 letter to Zeldin requesting the waiver.

More recently, the top Democrat on the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee also endorsed the move.

“With gas prices spiking, now’s the time to make E15 available year-round,” Minnesota U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, said in a March 19 statement. “It will help lower costs and decrease our dependence on foreign oil.”

U.S. Rep. Adrian Smith, a Nebraska Republican, also applauded Wednesday’s announcement, and called on Congress to make the policy permanent.

Ethanol industry groups also approved of the waiver. Geoff Cooper, the president and CEO of the national ethanol advocacy group Renewable Fuels Association, said the move was “exactly what the supply chain needs right now.”

“President Trump and Administrator Zeldin understand that year-round E15 is a solution that can extend domestic fuel supplies and reduce pump prices for hardworking American families,” Cooper said. “With geopolitical conflict roiling energy markets worldwide, we applaud President Trump and Administrator Zeldin for acting quickly and decisively to combat potential fuel shortages and help keep a lid on gas prices this summer.”

Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw also thanked the administration in a statement.

“With rising fuel prices and a war in the Middle East, this is the worst time to force retailers to bag E15 pumps. E15 adds home-grown supply and reduces prices for consumers,” he said.

Iran war disrupts oil market

Gas prices have risen since President Donald Trump launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28. Transport through the Strait of Hormuz has been limited due to threats from Iran during the conflict.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt noted at Wednesday’s press briefing the waiver was a part of the administration’s response to rising fuel costs during the war.

“Obviously the administration is coming up with creative new solutions by the day to keep the price of oil stable, something the president wants to see,” she said.

Trump will also welcome nearly 1,000 farmers to the White House for a National Agriculture Day event on Friday, where the president plans to promote his record on the issue, Leavitt said.

The E15 waiver will be in effect May 1 through May 20. Twenty days is the longest period a single waiver can be applied under the Clean Air Act, the EPA said in the press release. The move signals the administration views further waivers as an option as restrictions ramp up over the summer.

Shauneen Miranda contributed to this report.