The
federal 8-hour ozone standards adopted by EPA in 1997 (0.08 ppm by
volume for primary and secondary standards) were overturned in the US
Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in 1999 on the
grounds that the agency had overstepped its authority and unlawfully
usurped Congress’ legislative power. However, the EPA appealed the case to the US Supreme Court. In February 2000, the Supreme Court found that that EPA had not
overstepped its authority and had not unlawfully usurped Congress’
legislative power; however, the Court did find that the implementation
policy was unlawful. The
Court confirmed that the Clean Air Act does not bar EPA from
implementing the ozone standard. On
November 13, 2002, the American Lung Association and eight other public
interest groups filed a complaint alleging that EPA failed to designate
areas for the 8-hour ozone standard. In response to this complaint, EPA published a proposed consent
decree establishing April 15, 2004 as the date for promulgating
attainment designations for the 8-hr ozone standard. On
April 15, 2004 EPA designated as "nonattainment" areas
throughout the country that exceeded the health-based standards for
8-hour ozone. Follow the link below for more information:
EPA's
Final Nonattainment Designations for 8-Hour Ozone
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