Recent Updates to Federal Environmental and Natural Resource Regulations
On-Demand Webinar | Regulatory Uncertainty and Linear Infrastructure Projects: Where Are We and What’s Ahead?
On-Demand Webinar | Linear Infrastructure Redux: Adapting Your Projects to Meet the New Regulatory Climate
On-Demand Webinar | The New NEPA Regulations: A Practical Guide to What You Need to Know
How Trump's Infrastructure Plan Impacts the Energy Industry
On May 1, 2024, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published notice in the Federal Register of a final rule amending its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The final...more
This is the fifth in a series of six eAlerts on the Bipartisan Permitting Reform Implementation Rule published in the Federal Register on May 1, 2024 (Final Rule) by the Council for Environmental Quality (CEQ). The Final Rule...more
This is the fourth in a series of six eAlerts examining the Bipartisan Permitting Reform Implementation Rule published in the Federal Register on May 1, 2024 (Final Rule) by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). The...more
On May 1, 2024, the Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) published the final version of Phase 2 of its National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) rulemaking (“Phase 2 Rule”). The Phase 2 Rule is the culmination of the...more
This is the third in a series of six eAlerts on the Bipartisan Permitting Reform Implementation Rule published in the Federal Register on May 1, 2024 (Final Rule) by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). The Final Rule...more
Introduction On May 1, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) published its Final Rule implementing revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”)—better known as Phase 2 (the “Final Rule”)....more
Based on immediate reactions to the long-awaited final "Phase II" NEPA regulations, one might think that the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) substantially altered long-standing federal environmental review practice....more
On May 1, 2024, the Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) promulgated the Bipartisan Permitting Reform Implementation Rule (“Final Rule”), 89 Fed. Reg. 35,442 (May 1, 2024), which is better known as Phase 2 of the Biden...more
On July 31, 2023, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) proposed to update its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) across the federal government. Reflecting the increasingly...more
On July 31, 2023, the Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) proposed the Bipartisan Permitting Reform Implementation Rule (“Proposed Rule”), 88 Fed. Reg. 49,924 (July 31, 2023), which is better known as Phase 2 of the...more
On July 28, 2023, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) proposed reforms to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations governing how federal agencies review the environmental effects of major federal...more
Federal agencies are required to conduct assessments under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) before taking “major federal actions,” such as granting permits needed for infrastructure projects and for certain...more
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) was signed into law on January 1, 1970, and it has rarely been amended or revised since then. NEPA is basically a procedural statute which requires Federal permitting authorities,...more
On June 3, 2023, President Biden signed into law the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA). The FRA was the result of an agreement between White House and congressional GOP negotiators....more
On June 3, 2023, President Biden signed the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (“FRA”) into law, extending the U.S. debt limit into 2025. As part of the Congressional deal, FRA also contains amendments to the National...more
On June 3, 2023, President Biden signed into law the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (“the Act”), which includes modest changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”), among other things. The Act amends NEPA in...more
Hiding in plain sight in the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA)--which is intended to extend the nation’s debt limit into 2025 in order to avoid a federal default--are provisions that seek to amend the National...more
The Fiscal Responsibility Act’s Revisions to the Iconic Statute Largely Codify Existing Interpretation and Practice On May 31, 2023, the House of Representatives advanced the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (“FRA”), which...more
The Ninth Circuit upheld the Federal Aviation Administration’s decision to study only the project and the no action alternative in an EIS for a new passenger terminal. However, the court found the FAA violated NEPA by failing...more
On April 20, 2022, the Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) published a final rule revising the primary regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”). The final rule largely restored provisions...more
Last week, through the Council on Environmental Quality’s (CEQ) publication of a final rule at the close of phase one of a two-phase rulemaking process, the Biden administration began its efforts to reverse the prior...more
On April 19, 2022, the Biden administration finalized a new rule (“Final Rule”) rolling back the Trump administration’s 2020 changes limiting the scope of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Final Rule...more
What Changed, What Matters for Local Governments and What’s Next - The White House Council on Environmental Quality has reversed three key Trump administration changes that govern how federal agencies implement the...more
Earlier this week, the Council on Environmental Quality promulgated its Phase I rule amending the NEPA regulations. The final rule largely implements the proposed rule, though with some minor changes. Since the final rule...more
On Wednesday, April 20, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published a final rule completing the first stage of rulemaking to revise certain provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act’s (NEPA) implementing...more