A federal appeals court is refusing to block the Obama administration's climate change initiative. Two dozen states and other energy companies sued (PDF) the Environmental Protection Agency in October on the day the carbon-emissions cutting plan became law.

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said that the plan, which impacts hundreds of power plants across the nation and is one of the president's centerpiece accomplishments, can proceed even as the legal challenge is pending. "Petitioners have not satisfied the stringent requirements for a stay pending court review," the court ruled in a brief order Thursday. (PDF)

The rule requires a 32 percent reduction in power plant emissions by 2030, with the baseline set at 2005 emission levels. Coal-burning power plants, which generate about a third of the nation's power, are the hardest hit. West Virginia and Kentucky, two of the states that rely heavily on coal for power and jobs, initiated the legal challenge to the Clean Power Plan . Utilities are the nation's largest source of carbon emissions.

In response to the ruling, the administration said, "We are confident that the plan will reduce carbon pollution and deliver better air quality, improved public health, and jobs across the country."

The suing states said the plan needed to be halted immediately so they would not have to begin the changeover until the lawsuit is resolved. The appeals court said it would hear the case on June 2.

"The court did not issue a ruling on the merits, and we remain confident that our arguments will prevail as the case continues," said Patrick Morrisey, the West Virginia attorney general.

Morrisey has said the rule would increase energy costs and devastate the coal mining industry. He described it as "the single most onerous and illegal regulations that we've seen coming out of DC in a long time."