Federal judge blocks California greenhouse gas regulations

A federal judge in Fresno ruled Thursday that a California regulation aimed at forcing producers of gasoline and diesel fuel to lower the carbon dioxide pollution in those fuels over the next decade violates the U.S. Constitution.

Judge Lawrence O'Neill of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California held that the Low Carbon Fuel Standard violates the commerce clause, which forbids states from discriminating against economic actors outside their borders or placing an excessive burden on entities engaged in interstate economic activity.

The regulation "discriminates against out-of-state corn-derived ethanol while favoring in-state corn ethanol and impermissibly regulates extraterritorial conduct," O'Neill wrote in granting a preliminary injunction preventing enforcement of the California Air Resources Board regulation.

O'Neill's opinion also indicated, but did not hold, that the regulation may be preempted by federal law.

This element of O'Neill's analysis has the potential to the most far-reaching. If adopted as part of a ruling on the merits by an appeals court, it would likely severely constrain the ability of California and other states to regulate emissions of greenhouse gases.

The particular federal laws O'Neill cited as occupying the legal field of regulating fuels are the Clean Air Act and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2006.

Proponents of the regulation obtained permission to appeal the ruling immediately.