On September 14, 2026, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin signed the final “Partial Repeal of the Carbon Pollution Standards for Fossil Fuel-Fired Electric Generating Units,” repealing the majority of the provisions of the 2024 standards for greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel-fired power plants. The rule takes effect soon after publication in the Federal Register. EPA paired it with a separate proposal, the “Rescission of the Greenhouse Gas Findings for Fossil Fuel-Fired” power plants, which would repeal the remaining power plant greenhouse gas regulations and is open for public comment. Zeldin announced it at a meeting of G20 energy ministers in Houston.
EPA's legal reasoning for the final rule is that carbon capture at 90 percent “has not been adequately demonstrated, the costs of 90 percent CCS are not reasonable, and the associated degree of emission limitation is not achievable,” and that requiring 40 percent natural gas co-firing “constitutes impermissible generation shifting” under the Supreme Court's West Virginia decision. For the broader proposal, its fact sheet asserts that greenhouse gas emissions from these plants “have no material impact on global climate change.” EPA estimates the final rule will save Americans and the power sector up to $310 billion, and says coal production for power sector use “is expected to increase by more than 10 times.” Zeldin said, “For over 15 years, the Obama and Biden administrations implemented a war on coal to destroy reliable and affordable energy. The Trump Administration has come in to protect American energy and to make sure you can afford to keep the lights on.”
The public health side of the ledger is large. When the 2024 rule was announced, EPA projected it would prevent 1,200 premature deaths in 2035 alone and produce $120 billion in health benefits through 2047. When the administration proposed repealing the regulations entirely last year, it estimated the change would release 123 million more metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2035 alone. Resources for the Future estimated health damages of up to $476 billion from the repeal. The coal industry welcomed the move: Michelle Bloodworth of America's Power said it “will protect grid reliability and shield electricity consumers from higher costs at a time of surging demand from data centers, artificial intelligence and advanced manufacturing.” The Natural Resources Defense Council said, “We will see them in court.” Legal challenges followed (see the October 5 update below).
This is the power plant step that the February repeal of the endangerment finding did not itself take (see EPA Revokes the 2009 Endangerment Finding That Underpins Federal Greenhouse Gas Rules).
Update (October 5, 2026): On October 1, New York Attorney General Letitia James led a coalition of 25 other states, counties and cities in suing over the repeal, asking the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to strike it down. The coalition argues EPA abandoned the limits without properly considering reasonable alternatives or the health and climate costs, and that the rescission was arbitrary and capricious. It also filed a notice of intent to sue over EPA's failure to regulate greenhouse gas pollution from many existing gas-fired plants. “Dismantling these protections is a betrayal of American families, and the stakes are too high to allow this administration to once again put profits over people,” James said. EPA said it does not comment on pending litigation.