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Justices halt Obama’s climate change plan

FILE - This Oct. 20, 2010, file photo, shows Xcel Energy’s Sherco Power Plant is shown in Becker, Minn. A divided Supreme Court agreed Feb. 9, 2016, to halt enforcement of President Barack Obama's sweeping plan to address climate change until after legal challenges are resolved. The surprising move is a blow to the administration and a victory for the coalition of 27 mostly Republican-led states and industry opponents that call the regulations "an unprecedented power grab." (Jason Wachter/St. Cloud Times via AP, File)

The Supreme Court on Tuesday blocked a key part of President Barack Obama's ambitious proposal to limit carbon emissions and reduce global warming while the plan is challenged.

The court granted a stay request from Utah and more than two dozen other states, plus utilities and coal companies, that said the Environmental Protection Agency was overstepping its powers. The court's decision does not address the merits of the challenge but indicates justices think the states have raised serious questions.

The administration's initiative required states to submit plans for shifting away from fossil-fuel power plants in favor of alternative forms of energy. It is aimed at reducing carbon-dioxide emissions at existing plants by about a third by 2030.

The stay means that questions about the legality of the program will remain after Obama leaves office. An appeals court is not scheduled to hear the case until June, and the Supreme Court's order said the stay would remain in effect while the losing side petitions the Supreme Court.

The timing imperils the Clean Power Plan because a new president could make significant changes.

As is its custom in stay requests, the court did not give a reason for its action. The court's four liberal justices — Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — objected to the decision but did not give an explanation.

The Obama administration had told the court that the stay request was unprecedented and that it was routine for federal programs to proceed while courts considered challenges.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who spearheaded the states' stay request, said the decision showed the court was leery of the plan.

"We are thrilled that the Supreme Court realized the rule's immediate impact and froze its implementation, protecting workers and saving countless dollars as our fight against its legality continues," Morrisey said in a statement.

Environmentalists said they hoped the setback was only temporary.

"Today's court decision is unfortunate but does not reflect a decision on the merits," said Vickie Patton, general counsel for the Environmental Defense Fund. "The Clean Power Plan has a firm anchor in our nation's clean-air laws and a strong scientific record."

The Clean Power Plan is an essential part of Obama's pledge to reduce the country's contribution to global warming because the electric-power sector of the economy emits 30 to 40 percent of all U.S. greenhouse gases.

The states had argued that the court needed to act now. Without a stay, they told the court, the plan would "force massive, irreversible changes in terms of state policies and resources, power plant shutdowns, and investments in wind and solar power" all in the name of a program that might ultimately be found unconstitutional.