SUPREME COURT PICKS UP RIGHT WHERE IT LEFT OFF: ROLLING BACK PROGRESS OF THE 20TH CENTURY

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (October 3, 2022) — Today, the Supreme Court will hear its first arguments of this term in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency. The right-wing Court closed out last term by limiting the EPA’s authority to combat the climate crisis. And in this first case of the October 2022 term, the conservative supermajority will have an opportunity to open up previously protected waterways to pollution and destruction. The Court could issue a decision that increases flooding and risks the health of families and communities across the country — at a time when 2 million Americans already lack access to clean drinking water.

In response, Take Back the Court released the following statement on behalf of its executive director, Sarah Lipton-Lubet:

“Today, the Supreme Court is picking up right where it left off last term — hacking away at decades-old protections keeping our air, water, and communities safe and healthy,”said Sarah Lipton-Lubet, executive director of Take Back the Court.“Millions of Americans already suffer without access to clean drinking water and sanitation, and more communities are dealing with flooding than ever before. But unsurprisingly, the Court’s radical conservative supermajority is gearing up to take the ever-popular stance that clean water should be less available, and is set to remove protections from wetlands that shield communities from floods. We need to move swiftly to expand the Court — before these rogue justices have rolled back every single progressive advancement of the 20th century.”