WASHINGTON, D.C. — The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the Department of Energy exceeded its authority when it ordered the JH Campbell Generating Plant in Michigan to remain open past its scheduled retirement date. The court ruled that there was no emergency within the meaning of the Federal Power Act justifying the order.

The court issued a unanimous 3-0 decision siding with environmental groups and the states of Michigan, Illinois, and Minnesota. Judge Cornelia Pillard wrote the opinion for the unanimous three-judge panel.

Reversing the plant's long and carefully planned retirement results in disruption, according to the opinion. Pillard wrote that the court's reading of the text, structure, and history leaves it unpersuaded by the Department of Energy's sweeping conception of its emergency authority.

The J. H. Campbell Generating Plant is a 1,420 MW, three-unit coal-fired generating plant that uses sub-bituminous coal. It has a summer generating capacity of 1,331 megawatts. The oldest of the plant's three generation units went online in 1962. Consumers Energy owns the facility and had planned to shut it down in May 2025.

Michigan regulators and the Midcontinent Independent System Operator reviewed and approved Consumers Energy's plans to replace the plant's power with less-expensive alternatives. President Donald Trump declared a national energy emergency in a January 2025 executive order, citing demand increases from artificial intelligence and data center growth.

Keeping the Michigan plant open beyond its May 2025 retirement has cost about $259 million so far, according to new financial filings. The Sierra Club calculated that it has cost consumers more than $540 million so far to keep the plants running past their retirement dates, with Campbell accounting for about half of those costs.

Ted Kelly, US clean energy director at the Environmental Defense Fund, said the court ruling rejected the Trump administration's nationwide effort to force unreliable, ageing coal plants that are bleeding money and polluting communities to stay online. Kelly said the Energy Department's unlawful actions attempted to make families and businesses in the midwest wastefully pay hundreds of millions of dollars for a coal plant that should have been shut down over a year ago.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said she was relieved the appeals court threw out the Department of Energy's order that had zero basis in reality. Nessel said her office has been fighting this unlawful political stunt at every turn, and this ruling proves what we have been saying all along: this administration does not get to invent fake emergencies to bypass the rule of law against the best interests of Michigan residents.

A Department of Energy spokesperson said the agency will continue to protect and defend energy security for all Americans. The Department of Energy orders also apply to plants in Indiana, Colorado, Florida and Washington state.

Why It Matters

The ruling addresses the scope of federal authority under Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act, which allows the Department of Energy to declare emergencies during war or sudden increases in demand. The Department of Energy has issued a total of five emergency declarations for the JH Campbell Generating Plant, each limited to 90 days by the statute. This decision impacts similar orders affecting facilities in multiple states and establishes a judicial boundary for invoking emergency powers to override state-approved utility retirement schedules.

The financial and environmental stakes involve significant public costs and health impacts. The Environmental Defense Fund estimates the plant pours 10,000 pounds of toxic metals into Lake Michigan and causes more than 400 asthma attacks annually. The Sierra Club estimates that smog and soot pollution from the plant kills 66 people each year. The court's rejection of the emergency justification halts the expenditure of hundreds of millions of dollars required to keep the aging infrastructure operational beyond its planned closure.

Timeline

President Franklin D. Roosevelt used Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act in 1941 to meet electricity demand in the run-up to US entry into World War II. The oldest of the JH Campbell Generating Plant's three generation units went online in 1962. The JH Campbell Generating Plant is located in Ottawa County, Michigan, as of September 21, 2024.

Matthews said the Campbell plant provided over 650 megawatts every day from Jan. 21 to Feb. 1, 2025. Consumers Energy had planned to shut down the JH Campbell Generating Plant in May 2025.

What's New

Michigan Attorney General Nessel said she was relieved the appeals court threw out the Department of Energy's order that had zero basis in reality. Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act allows the Department of Energy to declare emergencies when the US is at war or when an emergency exists by reason of a sudden increase in the demand for electric energy, or a shortage of electric energy. A Department of Energy spokesperson said the emergency orders prevented blackouts and likely saved hundreds of lives during peak capacity events this past year. Kelly said the decision cuts the Department of Energy's legs out from under them in trying to argue that any of those orders are legal.

How Sources Differ

Regarding the Campbell plant's output, Emily Matthews said the Campbell plant provided over 650 megawatts every day from Jan. 21 to Feb. 1, while an Inside Climate News article stated the JH Campbell Generating Plant has a summer generating capacity of 1,331 megawatts. Regarding the campbell generating plant, Department of Energy orders noted the Department of Energy has issued a total of five emergency declarations for the JH Campbell Generating Plant, each limited to 90 days by the Federal Power Act, while a Department of Energy order stated Energy Secretary Chris Wright used emergency powers under Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act to keep the JH Campbell Generating Plant operating.

Regarding the campbell generating plant, Department of Energy orders noted the Department of Energy has issued a total of five emergency declarations for the JH Campbell Generating Plant, each limited to 90 days by the Federal Power Act, while an Inside Climate News article stated Consumers Energy owns the JH Campbell Generating Plant. Regarding the campbell generating plant, Department of Energy orders noted the Department of Energy has issued a total of five emergency declarations for the JH Campbell Generating Plant, each limited to 90 days by the Federal Power Act, while a Consumers Energy retirement plan stated Consumers Energy had planned to shut down the JH Campbell Generating Plant in May 2025.

Regarding the campbell generating plant, Department of Energy orders noted the Department of Energy has issued a total of five emergency declarations for the JH Campbell Generating Plant, each limited to 90 days by the Federal Power Act, while the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit opinion stated the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the Department of Energy exceeded its authority when it ordered the JH Campbell Generating Plant in Michigan to remain open past its scheduled retirement date. Regarding events in Michigan, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit opinion stated the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the Department of Energy exceeded its authority when it ordered the JH Campbell Generating Plant in Michigan to remain open past its scheduled retirement date, while financial filings stated keeping the Michigan plant open beyond its May 2025 retirement has cost about $259 million so far, according to new financial filings.