Update to Guidance on Regional Haze State Implementation Plans for the Second Implementation Period
EPA Issues Guidance Update on Regional Haze Plans for States to Ensure Reliability of the American Electric Grid
February 20, 2026 - Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a memorandum clarifying guidance on Regional Haze State Implementation Plans (SIPs) to support the reliability of our electric grid. For far too long, the Clean Air Act (CAA) and the Regional Haze Program (Program) have been weaponized to compel power plant closures in an attempt to force generation shifting. Despite one of the necessary considerations in the Program being energy impacts, effects on grid reliability have not been taken into account. EPA will no longer support this misuse. The agency will uphold the law and return the Program to its intended purpose. This guidance update is one of many actions EPA has taken to restructure the broken Regional Haze program and advance cooperative federalism with EPA’s state air partners.