The Trump administration on Tuesday asked [motion, PDF] the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit [official website] to postpone ruling on the Obama administration’s climate change regulations. This request came after President Donald Trump signed [JURIST report] an executive order [text] rolling back the Obama administration policies. The Clean Power Plan [text, PDF] was challenged during Obama’s presidency by certain states and industry groups that rely on the coal industry. There is concern that a positive ruling by the court in favor of the Clean Power Plan will give environmental groups ammunition to oppose Trump’s new order.

A priority of the Trump administration has been to roll back regulations and alter the country’s energy and environmental policies, which the current administration claims have hurt jobs and the growth of the economy. In February Trump signed legislation [JURIST report] that rolled back coal mining regulations implemented by the Obama administration. Also that week the president signed a repeal of regulations [JURIST report] that required energy companies to disclose their payments to foreign governments. Shortly after his inauguration, Trump signed orders advancing the construction [JURIST report] of both the Keystone XL pipeline and Dakota Access Pipeline.