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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the U.S. District Circuit Court for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of the Sierra Club, overturning the Department of Energy’s“emergency” order overriding the state’s and utility’s decision to close the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant.
In May 2025, Trump’s Department of Energy issued a last-minute “emergency order” days before the J.H. Campbell power plant was scheduled to retire. Sierra Club and Earthjustice, along with the State of Michigan, successfully argued that there was no “energy emergency” at the time of the extension order, and the order was an unlawful use of Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act.
Since the illegal order was issued, the J.H. Campbell power plant has been costing families in the Midwest region $600,000 a day to remain online. The administration has also issued similar unlawful orders across the country. According to Sierra Club’s “Burning Money” tracker, these orders have cost Americans over $546 million dollars to date. The Sierra Club has filed challenges against every unlawful extension order issued by the DOE.
