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# Trump Administration Appeals California Emissions-Waiver Order
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-california-2026-09-17-a/
- Published: 2026-09-17T05:24:11.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-17T05:24:11.000Z
- Description: The Trump administration appealed an order blocking EPA from routing four California emissions waivers through the Congressional Review Act, extending a consequential fight over state clean-air authority and federal procedure.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: State News, California

The Trump administration has appealed a federal judge’s order blocking the Environmental Protection Agency from sending four California air-pollution waivers to Congress for possible repeal under the Congressional Review Act.

The notice of appeal, filed September 15, moves the dispute to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, [Reuters reported](https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trump-administration-appeals-ruling-blocking-epa-sending-california-auto-2026-09-15/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). The immediate effect is procedural: U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell’s injunction remains in place unless the appeals court stays or reverses it, so EPA cannot presently use the challenged transmission to trigger expedited congressional review.

The four waivers cover California standards for vehicles and equipment, including earlier greenhouse-gas and zero-emission requirements and rules for small off-road engines. Under Section 209 of the Clean Air Act, California may seek federal permission to enforce vehicle-emission standards stricter than federal requirements. EPA’s [waiver repository](https://www.epa.gov/regulations-emissions-vehicles-and-engines/vehicle-emissions-california-waivers-and-authorizations?ref=theamericanquorum.com) explains that the agency publishes each request, takes public comment and then issues a decision allowing or denying enforcement.

The legal fight turns on whether those waiver decisions are “rules” subject to the Congressional Review Act or adjudicatory orders outside it. EPA treated the four decisions as rules when it transmitted them in June. California and allied plaintiffs sued, arguing that decades of agency practice and prior legal analysis classified waivers as orders based on particular facts.

That position has support from the Government Accountability Office. In a [March 2025 legal analysis](https://www.gao.gov/products/b-337179?ref=theamericanquorum.com) involving other California waivers, GAO concluded that a Clean Air Act preemption waiver is an adjudicatory order, not a rule subject to the review act. GAO also said that even if a waiver fit the Administrative Procedure Act’s broad definition of a rule, it would be a rule of particular applicability excluded from the congressional submission requirement.

Howell’s September injunction found that EPA’s reclassification was final agency action and that California was likely to succeed on its claim that the change was unlawful. The judge ordered EPA to restore the status quo that existed before the June submissions. The administration’s appeal does not resolve the merits; it begins appellate review of that preliminary order.

The case matters beyond the four documents. California’s waiver program shapes compliance planning for automakers and equipment manufacturers because other states may adopt certain California standards. The California Air Resources Board maintains a [waiver timeline](https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/resources/documents/carb-waiver-timeline?ref=theamericanquorum.com) tracking federal approvals and litigation, while EPA’s repository lists the specific Federal Register notices behind each program.

The appeal is separate from litigation over Congress’s earlier repeal of three other California vehicle waivers, including the Advanced Clean Cars II program associated with the state’s 2035 zero-emission sales requirements. For businesses and regulators, that separation is important: this case concerns whether EPA may newly route four different waiver decisions through the Congressional Review Act. The D.C. Circuit will now determine whether the trial court’s block remains in force while the lawsuit proceeds.