Last week, a coalition 166 state and local business associations from 40 states lead by Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas chambers of commerce joined together in filing an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit explaining the devastating economic impact posed by the EPA’s carbon regulations.

The lawsuit, involves the EPA’s “Clean Power Plan” rules, which aim to reconfigure state electricity systems. In issuing these regulations, the EPA purports to have discovered the authority to regulate how states generate, transmit, and use electricity, without any authority from Congress to do so.

The brief, echoes the call from nearly 160 challengers that have filed suit against the EPA, including the state of Ohio, 26 other states, as well as a host of business, labor and consumer groups. It outlines major legal and economic concerns with the rule, arguing that the EPA has trampled on the rights of states to determine their own energy mix and implement environmental standards in a manner tailed to their own circumstances.

A decision in the case is likely to be issued by the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit later this year. From there, the challenge is expected to make its way to the Supreme Court, which has ordered the EPA to halt all implementation and enforcement actions on the rule until it has the opportunity to consider the case.

As our amicus brief explained, the rushed, centrally-mandated redesign of the electricity grid under the Clean Power Plan will raise the cost of operations for countless businesses and communities, upsetting tax bases and forcing businesses to close.