And though Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring issued an opinion last week that the air board can regulate carbon under its existing authority, Martin predicts that the issue will surface again.

"The question will be does the board on its own have the ability to promulgate these regulations or does the General Assembly have to pass legislation to authorize it?" he said. "There's going to be many parties participating in it and it's going to result in litigation. If any regulations get enacted it will be after the governor leaves office."

Virginia House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, who is retiring, said McAuliffe's directive is "a broad assertion of regulatory authority, Washington-esque in both its nature and scope" that ignores the legislative process.

"Policy of this scope and magnitude should be debated and voted on by the people’s representatives, not unelected bureaucrats," he said, predicting hindered economic growth and higher energy prices. "We are carefully reviewing today's announcement and will take every action necessary to ensure that the voices of Virginia's citizens are heard and that major policy changes are adopted through the legislative process.”