Amy Dominguez, amy.dominguez@sierraclub.org
Laramie, WY – In an effort to further dismantle the legal foundation for federal climate regulation, the Trump administration proposed to repeal the Endangerment finding for power plants – an action that would permanently strip the Environmental Protection Agency of its authority to limit greenhouse-gas emissions from coal and gas power plants under the Clean Air Act. It would strip EPA of one of its most powerful tools for combating climate change.
Combined with its February repeal of the Endangerment Finding for motor vehicles, the administration is doing all it can to paralyze the EPA from legally acting on the two largest sources of carbon pollution in the country.
Wyoming coal plants emitted over 31 million tons of carbon in 2025, making them some of the state’s worst polluters. Aging coal plants like Jim Bridger, Dave Johnston, Wyodak, and Naughton are still in operation despite the affordability of renewable energy, costing ratepayers millions while continuing to threaten air quality and water supplies in our communities and on our public lands.
The proposal is another one of Donald Trump’s attempts to bolster the profits of a struggling coal industry and deliver directly on the promises EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin made to the corporate executives at a National Coal Council meeting in July, where he vowed to fulfill the industry’s “wish list.” The administration has already given more than $700 million in taxpayer dollars to the coal industry, despite the immense public and environmental harms associated with burning coal for electricity, and the well-documented evidence that clean energy is now cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable than fossil fuels.
The handouts and regulatory giveaways come as renewable energy continues to outperform coal in the marketplace. In May, solar energy generated more electricity than coal across the entire country. The coal industry cannot compete with solar—it’s being kept on life support by taxpayer subsidies and regulatory handouts, while ordinary families pay the price in higher electricity bills, dirtier air, and more extreme weather fueled by carbon pollution.
“Instead of prioritizing lowering energy prices, the Trump administration is set on raising them by locking in expensive, volatile fossil fuel markets that leave states like Wyoming with higher costs and fewer opportunities for jobs, investment, and tax revenue,” said Emma Jones, Sierra Club Climate and Energy Organizer. “Meanwhile, wind and solar have consistently kept our rates lower and reduced risk for customers. This repeal absolutely stacks the deck to the benefit of the fossil fuel industry.”
“While wildfires rage, floods devastate communities, and families struggle to afford skyrocketing electricity bills and insurance premiums, the Trump administration is handing the fossil fuel industry a license to keep polluting,’ said Sierra Club Chief Program Officer Holly Bender. “This is full-throated climate denial while the climate crisis happens in real time and a shocking betrayal of the American public. The Sierra Club will fight back against this reckless and dangerous proposal with everything we have in the courts, in Congress, and in communities across the country.”
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.