State AGs Condemn EPA's Rescission of Endangerment Finding

Detected February 12th, 2026

Summary

Ten State Attorneys General, led by Washington AG Nick Brown, have condemned the EPA's final rule rescinding the 2009 Endangerment Finding for greenhouse gas emissions. The AGs argue this action is illegal, ignores scientific consensus, and will endanger public health and welfare by eliminating federal standards for motor vehicle emissions.

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What changed

Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, joined by nine other State AGs, has issued a statement condemning the EPA's final rule rescinding the 2009 Endangerment Finding. This finding determined that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles contribute to air pollution that endangers public health and welfare. The AGs assert that the EPA's rescission is illegal, contradicts Supreme Court precedent (Massachusetts v. EPA), and ignores scientific evidence, thereby violating the agency's obligation to protect the public from environmental harm and eliminating all federal greenhouse gas standards for vehicles.

This action by the State AGs signals potential legal challenges to the EPA's rescission. Regulated entities, particularly in the automotive sector, should anticipate continued regulatory uncertainty and potential litigation. The AGs' statement indicates a commitment to defending existing environmental regulations and challenging actions they deem unlawful, which could lead to significant disruption in the regulatory landscape for emissions standards.

Source document (simplified)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Feb 12 2026

Attorney General Nick Brown issued the following statement today in response to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final rule rescinding the 2009 Endangerment Finding, which determined that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles contribute to air pollution that drives climate change and endangers public health and welfare.

“We can either use what we know to protect our natural resources and environment, or we can invite catastrophe by leaving greenhouse gas pollution unchecked,” Brown said. “For the sake of our communities and our future, this illegal action will not go unchallenged.”

The 2009 Endangerment Finding was the direct result of the landmark 2007 Supreme Court decision in Massachusetts v. EPA, which confirmed EPA’s authority under the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gas emissions that threaten public health and welfare. In response to that opinion and after years of scientific review, EPA confirmed in 2009 that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles contribute to air pollution that harms public health and welfare in numerous ways. The agency then set standards to limit motor vehicle greenhouse gas emissions.

EPA’s rescission of the Endangerment Finding rests on the flawed assertion — soundly rejected by the Supreme Court — that it lacks legal authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and ignores longstanding scientific evidence that greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare. The rule eliminates all existing and future federal greenhouse gas standards for vehicles, violating the agency’s legal obligations and fundamental responsibility to protect public health and welfare from environmental harm.

In the fall of 2025, a coalition of 23 attorneys general and seven counties and cities submitted two comment letters urging the EPA to abandon the proposal, arguing that it would violate settled law, Supreme Court precedent, and scientific consensus. The coalition also warned this action would endanger hundreds of millions of Americans — particularly communities disproportionately burdened by environmental harms — and cause unprecedented disruption to the regulatory landscape with catastrophic consequences for residents, industries, natural resources, and public investments.

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