Last week, President Trump made a public decision to take action on the Paris Agreement on climate change. His remarks have no legal effect on their own and do not explain when or what legal action will be taken. As a result,...more
On March 28, 2017, President Trump issued an “Executive Order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth” (E.O.) that takes aim at a broad range of federal climate and energy programs and regulations. The E.O....more
On March 15, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the agency and the U.S. Department of Transportation will jointly reconsider EPA’s January 12, 2017 determination not to change greenhouse gas...more
On January 12, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized its determination not to change greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for cars and light trucks manufactured in model years (MYs) 2022-2025. This...more
Presidential elections matter.
President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to drastically change the federal government’s role and policies in relation to energy, the environment and climate change. Reducing regulation...more
Presidential elections matter.
President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to drastically change the federal government’s role and policies in relation to energy, the environment and climate change. Reducing regulation...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) yesterday announced its proposed determination that greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for light-duty vehicles (LDVs) manufactured in model years (MYs)...more
Presidential elections matter.
President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to drastically change the federal government’s role and policies in relation to energy, the environment, and climate change. Reducing regulation...more
11/29/2016
/ Clean Energy ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Coal ,
Energy Reform ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Paris Agreement ,
Popular ,
Presidential Elections ,
Renewable Energy ,
Trump Administration
“Enough already!” Reading between the lines, this is what a seemingly exasperated California Supreme Court appears to be saying in its latest California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) decision?Friends of the College of...more
On Tuesday, June 21, the Federal Aviation Administration issued Part 107, the Final Rule for Operation and Certification of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). The Rule comes sixteen months after the FAA issued its Notice...more
Introduction -
On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an important decision that continues a trend of judicial skepticism toward federal agency efforts to avoid judicial review of agency permitting and related...more
6/3/2016
/ Administrative Appeals ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Judgment ,
Hawkes Co v United States Army Corps of Engineers ,
Judicial Review ,
Jurisdictional Determination (JD) ,
Land Developers ,
Permits ,
Property Owners ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 404 ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
It’s not quite Star Wars, but in the world of land use, this counts as a blockbuster. The California Supreme Court has decided unanimously that the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) generally does not require...more
[Note: In light of the FAA’s announcement of the drone registry, we’ve revisited our recent analysis of its authority to require registration.]
On December 14, 2015, the FAA issued the much-anticipated “Registration and...more
On December 12, 2015, 195 countries came together in Paris to adopt a landmark climate change deal. The Paris Agreement creates, for the first time, a long-term global framework that commits nearly every country to reducing...more
On November 21, 2015, the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Registration Task Force Aviation Rulemaking Committee, chartered by the FAA, issued its Final Report to the FAA containing the Task Force’s recommendations for how the FAA...more
On October 19, 2015, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Michael Huerta announced a plan to require unmanned aircraft vehicle (UAV or “drone”) users to register...more
11/4/2015
/ Airspace ,
Comment Period ,
Drones ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Agency Taskforce ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Fines ,
Public Safety ,
Registration Requirement ,
Retroactivity ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Iconic California tech companies are helping to pioneer the drone revolution. For over a year, Google’s advanced-research arm, Google X, has been testing its Project Wing aircraft in cooperation with NASA, moving ever-closer...more
10/17/2015
/ Airspace ,
Amazon ,
Drones ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Google ,
Governor Brown ,
Governor Vetoes ,
Invasion of Privacy ,
Preemption ,
Private Property ,
Surveillance ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Two out of three ain’t bad.
Climate change policy advocates may find themselves quoting Meat Loaf with the enactment of Senate Bill (SB) 350, which California’s Legislature passed last month and which Governor Jerry...more
10/17/2015
/ Biofuel ,
California Energy Commission ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CEQA ,
Clean Energy ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
CPUC ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Electricity ,
Energy Efficiency ,
Energy Policy ,
Executive Orders ,
Global Warming Solutions Act ,
Governor Brown ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
New Legislation ,
Renewable Energy ,
Renewable Portfolio Standards ,
Solar Energy ,
Utilities Sector ,
Wind Power
Citing “immediate risks” to national security, public health and the economy, the Obama administration adopted ambitious regulations and policies to implement its Clean Power Plan, establishing the first national standards to...more
Citing “immediate risks” to national security, public health, and the economy, the Obama Administration adopted ambitious regulations and policies to implement its Clean Power Plan, establishing the first ever national...more
8/6/2015
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Energy ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Coal-Fired Generation ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Emissions Trading System ,
Energy Efficiency ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FERC ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
National Emissions Standards ,
Natural Gas ,
Obama Administration ,
Power Plants ,
Reliability Standards ,
Renewable Energy ,
Solar Energy ,
Wind Power
The FAA’s regulatory actions on unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”) are accelerating, making it more important than ever for those in the industry—and those looking to use this technology in their own sectors—to keep their eyes...more
In an important and highly anticipated decision under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the California Supreme Court overturned a Court of Appeal’s decision that would have severely limited public agencies’...more
Over the weekend of Feb. 14, the FAA issued a much-anticipated Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)—i.e., drones weighing less than 55 pounds. The oft-delayed NPRM comes three years...more
Most of the attention paid to drones has focused on issues of aviation and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) authority. Yet much of the impact of low-flying drones will fall, not on the national air transportation system,...more
Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have operated within an uncertain legal framework while players across a rapidly growing range of commercial industries — from energy to rail transport to forestry to all types of...more