ELR Citation: 53 ELR 20094
No(s). 21-1251 (D.C. Cir. Jun 20, 2023)

The D.C. Circuit, in a split ruling, vacated certain provisions of EPA's rule phasing out the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). Two companies and three trade groups argued EPA exceeded its authority in issuing the rule and that the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act, which directed the Agency to promulgate the rule, violated the nondelegation doctrine. The court found the nondelegation challenge failed and that the AIM Act gave EPA authority to regulate HFCs within blends, but that the Agency lacked authority to pass two measures in the rule regulating the distribution of HFCs—a mandate for refillable cylinders to transport HFCs, which banned disposable cylinders used by the industry, and a certification and tracking system for HFC distribution. It vacated those provisions of the rule and remanded to EPA.