Description: Proceedings seeking to compel Texas state agency to adopt rules to reduce greenhouse gas emissions pursuant to public trust doctrine.
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Texas Commission on Environmental Quality v. Bonser-Lain
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 07/23/2014 Opinion Download Opinion issued dismissing for want of subject matter jurisdiction. The Texas Court of Appeals ruled that the district court erred in concluding that it had subject matter jurisdiction. The appellate court concluded that neither the Texas Administrative Procedure Act nor the Texas Water Code waived sovereign immunity for judicial review of denials of rulemaking petitions. 07/19/2013 Amicus Brief Download Amicus brief filed by business and industry groups in support of appellant. 05/09/2013 Amicus Brief Download Amicus brief filed in support of appellees. 04/22/2013 Brief Download Brief filed by appellees. 02/19/2013 Brief Download Brief filed by appellant Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. -
Bonser-Lain v. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 08/02/2012 Judgment Download Final judgment issued affirming denial of rulemaking petition. 07/09/2012 Letter Download Letter order issued. In July 2012, the judge hearing the case issued a letter order indicating that the court would hold that the Commission’s conclusion that the Public Trust Doctrine is limited to waters was legally invalid, and that the doctrine includes all natural resources of the state. The judge also held that the Commission’s conclusion that it was prohibited from regulating air quality pursuant to Section 109 of the Clean Air Act was also legally erroneous because the Clean Air Act was a floor, not a ceiling. The court said, however, that it would find that because the "legal landscape is uncertain" due to ongoing state and federal cases concerning federal and state authority to regulate greenhouse gases, the court would find that the Commission's refusal to exercise its regulatory authority was a reasonable exercise of discretion. 07/21/2011 Petition Download Plaintiffs' original petition filed. In July 2011, the group Texas Environmental Law Center filed a lawsuit in Texas state court on behalf of a young adult and minor children challenging the denial of their rulemaking petition seeking state action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. -
Petition for Rulemaking filed by Texas Environmental Law Center
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 06/27/2011 Response to Petition for Rulemaking Download Decision issued denying petition for rulemaking. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality denied the petition, stating that Texas was currently in litigation with EPA concerning the regulation of greenhouse gases, and that the use of the public trust doctrine in the state had been limited to waters and did not extend to greenhouse gases. 05/05/2011 Petition for Rulemaking Download Petition for rulemaking filed. In May 2011, an environmental group, Texas Environmental Law Center, filed a rulemaking petition requesting that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality adopt rules to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels pursuant to the public trust doctrine. The petition was part of a nationwide campaign by Our Children’s Trust and iMatter, groups that seek to combat climate change on behalf of future generations.