Earlier this week, a federal judge denied a request for an injunction from owners of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant to keep the facility online past its deadline to close down when its 40-year contract license expires next year. Although the Vermont Senate voted to deny the company a new operating license last year, the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission opted to extend the plant’s license for 20 more years, in the days following the Fukushima nuclear crisis. The heart of the dispute is whether a state has a right to close down a federally permitted facility. An appeal is expected from the Vermont Yankee owners, who are a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation, the second largest nuclear power plant operator in the United States. The Vermont Yankee plant is one of the oldest in the country and has had a series of radioactive tritium leaks. Vermont’s attempt to closure the facility marks the first time a state has moved to shut down a reactor in more than 20 years. The case could affect nuclear policy across the United States as dozens of other aging nuclear plants seek renewed operating licenses in upcoming years.