Virginia v. Browner
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
80 F.3d 869 (1996)
- Written by Liz Nakamura, JD
Facts
Virginia (plaintiff) sought review of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) (defendant) disapproval of its air-pollution permitting structure pursuant to Title V of the Clean Air Act (CAA). One of the key requirements of Title V was that permitting decisions be subject to judicial review. Virginia’s air-pollution permitting structure allowed the permit applicant to challenge the permitting decision in court but restricted standing for third parties only to those with a substantial monetary interest. Those restrictions violated Title V. The EPA disapproved Virginia’s permitting structure, subjecting Virginia to potential CAA sanctions, including restricted federal highway funding, increased pollution-offset requirements, and having the EPA step in to set up Title V permitting in Virginia. Virginia challenged, arguing (1) Title V requirements impinged on state sovereignty; and (2) the Title V sanctions violated the Spending Clause and the Tenth Amendment.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Michael, J.)
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