The Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to formally rescind carbon pollution standards for coal- and gas-fired power plants, marking another significant climate rollback by the Trump administration.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin was expected to announce the repeal on Monday, September 14, 2026, during the G20 energy ministers' meeting in Houston, Texas, according to multiple reports. White House regulatory officials completed their review of two related EPA items on Friday, including a final rule to eliminate the 2024 power-plant regulations and a separate proposal designed to block future carbon dioxide standards for fossil-fuel power plants.
The action represents a continuation of the Trump administration's effort to dismantle environmental regulations it characterizes as obstacles to industrial development and energy production expansion. The rollback targets rules originally enacted under the Biden administration to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, mercury, and other air pollutants from power plants.
What would the repeal accomplish?
If finalized, the repeal would eliminate federal authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, potentially constraining the regulatory capacity of future administrations. According to an EPA proposal from June 11, 2025, repealing the Biden-era power-plant rules would save the power sector approximately $19 billion over two decades, or roughly $1.2 billion annually. The proposal also targeted amendments to the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, which the EPA contended would force coal-fired plants to cease operations.
The separate rule under consideration would repeal the federal finding that greenhouse gases from power plants specifically pose a threat to public health and welfare. The EPA finalized rescission of the broader greenhouse-gas endangerment finding on February 12, 2026, a move that federal climate lawyers say could make later power-sector rollbacks easier to defend legally.
What impact would this have on emissions?
The Biden administration's carbon emission standards for power plants were projected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1 billion metric tons by 2047, representing a substantial component of the previous administration's climate strategy. The electricity sector accounts for nearly one-quarter of all United States greenhouse gas pollution, making power plants a critical focus for emissions reduction efforts.
How have environmental groups responded?
Environmental advocates have strongly opposed the anticipated rollback.
The Sierra Club will fight back against this reckless and dangerous proposal with everything we have in the courts, in Congress, and in communities across the country,said Holly Bender, the Sierra Club's chief program officer. She continued:
While wildfires rage, floods devastate communities, and families struggle to afford skyrocketing electricity bills and insurance premiums, the Trump administration is handing the fossil fuel industry a license to keep polluting. This is full-throated climate denial while the climate crisis happens in real time and a shocking betrayal of the American public.
Climate advocates and experts have characterized the rollbacks as favors to polluters that come at the expense of planetary health, public health outcomes, and long-term economic wellbeing for American households.
What is the legal and regulatory timeline?
A supplemental proposal to end EPA's power-plant carbon regulation entered White House review on September 2, 2026. The EPA had initially proposed on June 11, 2025, to repeal all greenhouse-gas emissions standards for the power sector under Clean Air Act Section 111, along with related 2015 and 2024 power-plant rules. Harvard's environmental law tracker documented that the EPA sent a final rule to Office of Management and Budget review on May 14, 2026, to repeal the Biden administration's carbon pollution standards for power plants.
Any formal repeal will almost certainly face legal challenges from environmental organizations and state governments, though the outcome of such litigation remains uncertain given the current composition of federal courts.
What happens next?
The EPA's formal announcement of the repeal action was scheduled for Monday, September 14, 2026, coinciding with the G20 energy ministers' meeting in Houston. The agency also planned to simultaneously propose the separate rule repealing the federal finding that greenhouse gases from power plants pose a threat, setting the stage for additional legal and political battles over the nation's climate and energy policies.
Key Facts
- The EPA is finalizing a repeal of carbon pollution standards for coal- and gas-fired power plants, with the announcement expected on September 14, 2026, in Houston
- The rollback would eliminate federal authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, potentially restricting future administrations' regulatory capacity
- The electricity sector is responsible for nearly 25 percent of United States greenhouse gas emissions, making power plants central to climate policy
- The Biden administration's standards were projected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1 billion metric tons by 2047
- Environmental groups have pledged legal challenges and mobilization against the proposed repeal
