It is instructive to review the Supreme Court’s record in its most recent term, concentrating on regulatory and administrative law cases, which are usually back-burner issues. But not this term....more
10/30/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Clean Air Act ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Firearms ,
First Amendment ,
Government Agencies ,
Gun Laws ,
Insurance Industry ,
Judicial Authority ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Media ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Supreme Court Justices
In 1984, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decided Chevron USA, Inc. v. National Resource Defense Council, reversing a lower court ruling that set aside EPA’s Clean Air Act “bubble policy” of providing regulatory relief from...more
7/25/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Certiorari ,
Chevron Deference ,
Chevron v NRDC ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FCC ,
FERC ,
IRS ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
NEPA ,
NLRB ,
Relentless Inc v US Department of Commerce ,
SCOTUS
The Accidental Chemical Release Rules have an effective date of May 10, 2024, and includes a number of situations requiring compliance, generally by May 10, 2027.
The new Clean Water Act facility response plan...more
4/25/2024
/ Chemical Spills ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Compliance ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Incident Response Plans ,
New Rules ,
NRDC ,
Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90) ,
Risk Management
Both regulators and the regulated community must remain alert to accommodate the constantly changing regulatory scheme created in the post-Sackett world.
The application of Maui and Sackett in recent months confirms the...more
2/26/2024
/ Chevron Deference ,
Clean Water Act ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
It is clear that these have been busy months for federal environmental regulators, especially those working at EPA, the federal departments and the Council on Environmental Quality. Even the Department of Agriculture has...more
11/16/2023
/ Bureau of Land Management ,
CEQ ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Agriculture ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Government Agencies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Popular ,
Public Policy ,
RCRA ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The Supreme Court issued 58 opinions in the October 2022 Term. Rulings in several cases will affect the practice of regulatory and administrative law either directly or indirectly, as is recounted below. Before the Court...more
8/25/2023
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farm Animals ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Jurisdiction ,
Mallory v Norfolk Southern Railway Co ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
This is a brief roundup of recent federal court environmental and regulatory law decisions from the federal courts over the past few months, including the much anticipated ruling in Sackett, et ux., v, Environmental...more
6/1/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
Clean Water Act ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FERC ,
Flooding ,
Navigable Waters ,
NEPA ,
Popular ,
Rivers ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Water Pollution ,
Waters of the United States
Recently, two Federal policies have been released that could have a significant effect upon environmental remediation and the emergency response procedures and policies of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The recent...more
The 2023 redefinition reinstates the “1986” framework defining the reach and scope of navigable waters.
To determine if a regulated body of water is located on the landowner’s property, the agencies acknowledge these...more
If “Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?” It’s been a quiet term thus far for the Supreme Court, due in part to the hearing of oral arguments in many contentious cases. Below is a brief summary of some of the recent...more
As 2022 draws to a close, here is a brief description of recent environmental and regulatory law rulings, as well as new federal rulemaking proceedings....more
12/21/2022
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FERC ,
Flint Water Crisis ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Texas ,
Water
This is a review of initial Supreme Court and Federal Appeals Courts oral arguments and other matters in October 2022. Oral Arguments at the Supreme Court - Michael Sackett, et ux., v. Environmental Protection Agency The...more
This is a selection of significant environmental and regulatory law cases decided by the federal courts after the Supreme Court’s 2021 Term concluded....more
The first quarter of 2022 has yielded a number of decisions, reversals and agency adjustments worth note. ...more
3/30/2022
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
CERCLA ,
Environmental Claims ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FEMA ,
FERC ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Utilities Sector ,
Wetlands
On December 7, 2021, the most recent proposed revision to the Clean Water Act’s term, “Waters of the United States” was published in the Federal Register. (See 86 FR 69372.) Comments on this proposal must be submitted by...more
2/2/2022
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Proposed Rules ,
Rapanos v US ,
Significant Nexus Test ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
We interrupt our usual scrutiny of the courts to focus (mostly) on the important developments in notices and rulemaking issued by and concerning federal regulatory agencies and departments in the past several weeks....more
Environmental Justice, as an urgent policy priority of the Federal Government, dates back to 1994, and President Clinton’s issuance of Executive Order 12898. This order directed federal agencies to identify and address, as...more
Selected federal regulatory actions taken or proposed by several federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency: EPA Actions. On September 15, 2021, EPA’s Water Office issued a memo rescinding a January...more
On August 16, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the lower court’s ruling that the Idaho property of Michael and Chantell Sackett was a regulated wetlands under the then-controlling 1977 EPA rules...more
Several decisions of interest were issued in the 2020 term, which stretched from October 2020 until early July 2021. This review will concentrate on environmental and administrative law cases....more
7/15/2021
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Patent Judges ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Florida v Georgia ,
Guam v United States ,
Natural Resources ,
Ownership Rules ,
SCOTUS ,
Texas v New Mexico ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Waste Disposal ,
Water ,
Water Rights
This is a brief account of some of the important environmental and administrative law cases recently decided. THE U.S. SUPREME COURT - Pakdel v. City and County of San Francisco - On June 28, 2021, the Supreme Court decided...more
What follows is a brief account of some of the notable U.S. environmental and administrative law cases recently decided. THE U.S. SUPREME COURT - Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution vests the President, with the advice...more
6/23/2021
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Alien Tort Statute ,
Building Permits ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Erosion ,
Homeowners ,
Misbranding ,
Oil & Gas ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Railways ,
SCOTUS ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
United States v Arthrex Inc ,
Workplace Safety
This is a brief review of some of the significant environmental (and administrative law decisions) released the past few weeks. THE U.S. SUPREME COURT - On April 22, 2021, the Court decided two important administrative law...more
5/13/2021
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
AMG Capital Management LLC v FTC ,
Clean Water Act ,
Coal Mines ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Eviction ,
Flooding ,
Hurricane Harvey ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Environmental Justice, as an urgent priority of the Federal Government, dates back to 1994, and President Clinton’s issuance of Executive Order 12898. This order directed federal agencies to identify and address, as...more
This is a brief report on new environmental law decisions, regulations and legislation. THE U.S. SUPREME COURT - Massachusetts Lobsterman’s Association v. Raimondo, Secretary of Commerce - On March 22, 2021, the Supreme...more