WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) issued the following statement after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked implementation of President Obama’s excessive carbon mandates while legal challenges move forward.

“Considering the president’s national energy tax would cost hundreds of billions of dollars over the next 15 years, today’s decision is welcome news for American families. Even after Congress and the American people rejected Obama’s national energy tax, he still chose to move forward with his far-reaching regulations regardless of the effect on family budgets. The result of the president’s determination to circumvent Congress and appease international negotiators in Paris is a paper-thin legacy composed of executive actions like his expensive regulations on affordable energy that risk being overturned in the future.”

Twenty-seven states have challenged the final Clean Power Plan in court.