In June of last year, the Obama Administration’s EPA launched an aggressive assault against states’ rightful powers by proposing federal carbon regulations that require states to reduce carbon dioxide emission by a staggering 30 percent in just 15 years. Since announcing the proposed regulation, the Administration’s EPA has employed unprecedented, threatening tactics designed to bully states into compliance, irrespective of the feasibility or legality of its proposal. States that don’t comply face the potential of losing regulatory control on energy matters to the federal government.

On April 16, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit will hear arguments on two separate but related lawsuits filed by numerous states and energy companies in the wake of last June’s proposed rule. The lawsuits contend that the rule and EPA’s compliance threats are illegal.