October 2014

This week, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a request of the Utility Air Regulatory Group (UARG)—an organization representing power and mining companies—to hear a court challenge to the current EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standards for ozone. During the Bush Administration, EPA lowered the ozone standard from 80 parts per billion to 75 parts per billion (ppb) over an 8-hour period. UARG challenged the standard saying that EPA had failed to provide adequate justification for why the standard needed to be lowered. By refusing to hear the case, the Supreme Court has effectively settled all legal challenges to the current standard.

With legal challenges for the current standard exhausted, attention now turns to EPA as it considers changes to the current standard. Internal EPA staff documents and an external advisory panel have recommend EPA consider lowering the current standard of 75 ppb to a stricter standard in the range of 60-70 ppb.