Mississippi v. U.S. Department of Energy

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a petition for review challenging the direct final rule promulgated by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in 2024 that established energy conservation standards for consumer conventional cooking products such as stoves and cooktops. The court concluded that it had authority to review the petition and held that the Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) required DOE to withdraw the direct final rule after comments identified “a reasonable basis” for doubting the rule’s legality under EPCA’s provision allowing promulgation of standards via direct final rule. The court remanded the matter to DOE.

Mississippi and six other states filed a petition for review in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals challenging the U.S. Department of Energy’s “Energy Conservation Standards for Consumer Conventional Cooking Products.” The petition did not set forth the states’ arguments, but part of DOE’s evaluation of the standards included consideration of their climate change benefits.