BREAKING: Supreme Court issues unanimous ruling on judicial authority in environmental cases

May 29, 2025

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From Fox News: The Supreme Court on Thursday limited the authority of judges to block infrastructure projects due to environmental concerns.

The nine justices handed down the lone decision Thursday morning, slightly curbing judicial authority at a time when President Donald Trump’s administration is loudly complaining about alleged judicial overreach. The case, Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, relates to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the requirement for environmental impact statements (EIS) in infrastructure projects supported by the federal government.

“NEPA does not allow courts, ‘under the guise of judicial review’ of agency compliance with NEPA, to delay or block agency projects based on the environmental effects of other projects separate from the project at hand,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in the opinion of the court.

“Courts should afford substantial deference and should not micromanage those agency choices so long as they fall within a broad zone of reasonableness,” the opinion continued.

In the 8-0 ruling, Justice Neil Gorsuch withdrew himself from participating in the case. Reportedly, his recusal came after Democrat lawmakers had argued that Denver-based billionaire Philip Anschutz, a longtime ally of Gorsuch, had a financial interest in the outcome of the case.

All the other justices, both conservative and liberal, agreed on the final decision. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Amy Coney Barrett joined with Kavanaugh’s opinion, while Justice Sonia Sotomayor filed a separate concurring opinion, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

In a separate report, CNN wrote: The Supreme Court on Thursday limited the scope of environmental reviews of major infrastructure projects in a decision that could speed up approvals of highways, airports and pipelines.

The decision is the latest setback for environmentalists at the conservative Supreme Court, which has in recent years shut down regulations intended to protect wetlands, for instance, and reduce air pollution wafting across state lines. President Donald Trump repeatedly slammed the government’s environmental review process as too cumbersome.

For too long, America’s infrastructure builds have been held back by reams of red tape.

But today, the Supreme Court helps to correct course—eliminating needless environmental hoops.

As the FCC works to unleash more infrastructure builds, permitting reforms like this are key. pic.twitter.com/wNAWl7ec05

— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) May 29, 2025

Justice Gorsuch did not participate in this case. Groups had urged him to step aside b/c of his links to billionaire Philip Anschutz. Anschutz owns an oil and gas company that filed a brief in the case.

— SCOTUSblog (@SCOTUSblog) May 29, 2025

Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) wrote, “This is welcome news for Utah and America’s energy future. The Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling poses a firm and a clear message: NEPA is a “procedural cross-check, not a substantive roadblock.” For too long, litigious groups have weaponized environmental reviews to stall critical projects—oil, gas, wind, solar, nuclear, and more. I’ll keep pushing for real permitting reform to unlock our full potential to provide affordable, reliable, and clean energy.”

This is welcome news for Utah and America’s energy future. The Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling poses a firm and a clear message: NEPA is a “procedural cross-check, not a substantive roadblock.”

For too long, litigious groups have weaponized environmental reviews to stall… pic.twitter.com/oqHeyX1jvm

— Senator John Curtis (@SenJohnCurtis) May 29, 2025

If we’re serious about unleashing American energy, we need to give the sector what it needs most: predictable rules and freedom from arbitrary delays.