EHSLeaders cited Spencer Fane attorney John L. Watson’s firm blog post, Battle Over California’s Vehicle Air Emission Waivers Now in U.S. District Court, in their recent article about the ongoing legal conflicts against California’s vehicle air admission standards.
The EHSLeaders piece, Texas Joins Trump Administration in Fight Against California Emissions Policies, discusses the state of Texas’ recent move to join litigation against California’s emissions waivers based on the stance that they will harm the Texas oil and gas industry and “[dictate] the entire nation’s vehicle emissions standards.” The article harnesses John’s thought leadership as its primary source for summarizing California’s position on the matter:
“Central to the states’ complaint is the argument that [CRA] cannot be used to negate ‘state rules’ or to alter federal limits on state authority: … In addition, the [CAA] preemption waivers are ‘adjudicatory orders’ under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), not ‘rules,’” John said, with EHSLeaders also citing his prediction that the cases will wind up in the U.S. Supreme Court to “determine how the state and federal governments work together to implement vehicle air emissions standards.”
At Spencer Fane, John is a distinguished voice in environmental and energy law who leverages his in-depth commercial trial and litigation knowledge to understand clients’ needs and goals and serves as a formidable advocate on their behalf. As both a defense trial attorney and counselor, John represents clients in a variety of complex commercial cases, including breach of contract actions, real estate and land development, special district litigation, construction disputes between contractors and subcontractors, securities litigation, public land and natural resources law, mining, oil and gas, wildlife, toxic tort, Superfund, and air, water, and waste environmental cases.
Read the full EHSLeaders article here and John’s blog post here.