U.S. District Court of Appeals delivers defeat to Trump’s overreach on Campbell Coal Plant

LANSING  – Today the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of environmental groups and several state attorney generals, including Dana Nessel, overriding the Department of Energy’s “emergency” order keeping the state and owner Consumers Energy from closing the J.H. Campbell coal plant for good.

Days before it was scheduled to close after years of careful planning, the Trump administration’s Department of Energy issued a last minute “emergency order” forcing Campbell to remain open in May 2025. That order has been extended 5 times, most recently in August, at a cost of more than $640,000 a day and $259 million as of the end of June, according to Consumers.

“For over a year, the Trump administration has illegally forced the outdated and expensive Campbell Coal Plant to remain open despite outcry from the community and skyrocketing energy bills,” said Bentley Johnson, federal government affairs director for the Michigan League of Conservation Voters. “Today’s court decision is a win for ratepayers, our air and our water. We commend Dana Nessel for working to challenge Trump’s illegal overreach that’s raising our energy costs.”

 

Background information:

Closing Campbell was to save Michiganders $600 million by 2040 and would shut down one of the worst greenhouse gas emitters in the state.

Under the guise of a fake “energy emergency,” the Trump administration ordered it and numerous other coal plants across the nation to remain open for 90 days, repeatedly renewing those “emergency” orders subsequently. 

Consumers Energy has made clear it intends to pass those costs to customers in Michigan and 10 other states. 

Michiganders already pay the highest energy costs in the Midwest for some of the least reliable electrical and gas service delivery in the country.

Prior to the Trump administration’s order, Consumers Energy had received regulatory approval to close Campbell and replace the plant’s output with clean, renewable sources and a new gas power plant. 

In April 2025, ahead of the first Trump administration extension, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, which oversees the energy grid Campbell provides power to, came out with a report showing the grid has more than enough energy to account for Campbell’s retirement. 

Coal plants are among the dirtiest and most dangerous polluters. They pose grave risks to both human health and the environment, and are more expensive to build, maintain and operate than clean energy sources such as wind and solar. 

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