In a highly anticipated decision for project developers and permitting agencies, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the D.C. Circuit’s 2023 decision that had invalidated federal approval of the Uinta Basin Railway. In Seven...more
6/4/2025
/ Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Judicial Review ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Railways ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SCOTUS
In a closely watched opinion issued on May 16, 2025, the Texas Supreme Court in Myers-Woodward, LLC v. Undergrounds Services Markham, LLC, — S.W.3d —, No. 22-0878, 2025 WL 1415892 (Tex. May 16, 2025) resolved a long-uncertain...more
Even as the Trump administration moves to block state and local climate liability efforts, states and municipalities continue to advance lawsuits seeking to hold fossil fuel companies liable for harms associated with climate...more
5/15/2025
/ Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenwashing ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a series of federal lawsuits against four states—New York, Vermont, Michigan and Hawaii—alleging that recent legislative and enforcement efforts to hold fossil fuel companies...more
5/9/2025
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Commerce Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14260, Protecting American Energy From State Overreach. Framed as part of the Administration’s broader strategy of unleashing American energy, the Order directs...more
4/18/2025
/ Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Natural Resources ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
With SB 813, California introduces a first-in-the-nation framework that reduces regulatory uncertainty and encourages responsible AI innovation. In addition to fostering public-private cooperation over top-down mandates, the...more
4/18/2025
/ Algorithms ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
California ,
Innovative Technology ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Risk Management ,
Safe Harbors ,
Technology Sector
States are increasingly turning to “Climate Superfund” laws as a potential mechanism to offset the growing costs of climate-related disaster recovery and the construction of more climate change-resilient infrastructure. These...more
4/8/2025
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corporate Liability ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Oil & Gas ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
Superfund
On March 20, 2025, the Trump administration invoked emergency powers in an Executive Order (EO) entitled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production, aiming to accelerate domestic mineral mining and processing....more
3/27/2025
/ Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of the Interior ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Funding ,
Investment ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Minerals ,
Mining ,
National Security ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration
Maryland has filed suit against W.L. Gore & Associates (Gore), a downstream user of PFAS-containing materials, alleging that its manufacturing processes contributed to PFAS contamination through its use of...more
3/14/2025
/ CERCLA ,
Consumer Product Companies ,
Contamination ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Manufacturers ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Toxic Chemicals
In a move that signals potential policy shifts under the new administration, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit granted EPA’s requests for 60-day stays in two high-profile cases challenging...more
3/14/2025
/ CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Trump Administration
Critical minerals are the backbone of modern technologies and national security, powering everything from advanced semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries to missile guidance systems and renewable energy infrastructure....more
3/14/2025
/ China ,
Clean Energy ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Executive Orders ,
International Trade ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mineral Extraction ,
National Security ,
Renewable Energy ,
Semiconductors ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration
Federal agencies are now responsible for their own National Environmental Policy Act procedures, creating uncertainty and opportunity for federal environmental reviews....more
3/11/2025
/ CEQ ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Executive Orders ,
Final Rules ,
Government Agencies ,
NEPA ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process
The executive order aims to expedite energy projects, boost domestic production, and strengthen U.S. energy independence through streamlined regulatory reforms. On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued the “Declaring a...more
1/31/2025
/ Defense Production Act ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Infrastructure ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration
Critical materials—the collective term for metals and minerals essential for all kinds of advanced technology and clean energy—are vital to the growth of artificial intelligence (AI), which has become pervasive in everyday...more
In a “paradigm shift in environmental liability,” some states are seeking to legislate financial responsibility on large coal and oil & gas companies for the public costs associated with strengthening infrastructure against...more
1/7/2025
/ CERCLA ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Liability ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Financial Responsibility Standards ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
New Legislation ,
New York ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Superfund
The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to address a circuit split over whether an agency doing an environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) must consider effects beyond its regulatory jurisdiction,...more
12/20/2024
/ Appeals ,
Chevron Deference ,
Climate Change ,
Construction Project ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Government Agencies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
NEPA ,
Oral Argument ,
Regulatory Authority ,
SCOTUS ,
Surface Transportation Board ,
Vacatur
With a renewed focus on domestic energy production and regulatory reform, the incoming administration signals significant shifts in U.S. energy and climate priorities.
The incoming Trump Administration will prioritize...more
12/19/2024
/ China ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Energy Costs ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Export Bans ,
Geothermal Energy ,
Grants ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Incentives ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Keystone XL Pipeline ,
Liquid Natural Gas ,
Minerals ,
Nuclear Power ,
Oil & Gas ,
Paris Agreement ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Renewable Energy ,
Renewable Fuel ,
Solar Energy ,
Tax Credits ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Trump Administration ,
UNFCCC ,
Wind Power
Governor Newsom signs amended law, abandoning prior bid to provide additional time for implementation.
Despite efforts by California Governor Gavin Newsom to provide more time for businesses to comply with the new...more
Artificial intelligence, data centers, carbon removal and zero-emission power may sound like a winning line (plus the Free Space) on a 2024 Buzzword Bingo card. But the concepts have come into dramatic real-world tension as...more
9/12/2024
/ Artificial Intelligence ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Data Centers ,
Electricity ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Green Energy ,
Infrastructure ,
Innovative Technology ,
Renewable Energy ,
Technology Sector
On May 20, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a final rule listing the dunes sagebrush lizard as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
The listing does not include a designation of critical habitat....more
The rules address the listing process for critical species and habitat designations, as well as protections for threatened species.
In a reversal, the rules also revise the ESA Section 7 interagency consultation process...more
Beginning April 12, 2024, USFWS will offer a general permit application for incidental take of bald and golden eagles for wind energy and power line projects.
The general permit option will provide an alternative to...more
The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) published a proposed rule aimed at modernizing and streamlining the “Type A” Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) regulations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response,...more
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
Louisiana is the third state granted authority to permit and regulate Class VI underground injection control (UIC) wells, marking a significant step forward for these projects.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)...more