On March 21, in one of its most significant rulemakings in recent years, the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed rules that would require public companies to provide investors with extensive, consistent, and...more
On March 31, 2022, President Biden issued Presidential Determination No. 2022-11, directing the Secretary of Defense, pursuant to Section 303 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (“DPA”), to take measures to improve the...more
President Biden ran on an energy and environmental platform calling for a carbon-free power sector by 2035 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The new Administration has hit the ground running with a raft of Executive...more
The US$900 billion COVID-19 relief/stimulus package passed by Congress and signed by the President on December 27 includes sweeping energy provisions that constitute the most significant energy legislation passed by Congress...more
12/30/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Reform ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Infrastructure ,
New Legislation ,
Nuclear Power ,
Pipelines ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Extenders
On Tuesday, November 3, 2020, Americans chose the presidency and the makeup of the United States Congress. With the U.S. election now decided, with the exception of the Georgia Senate races, we are delighted to share with you...more
12/29/2020
/ 5G Network ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Biden Administration ,
CFIUS ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Foreign Investment ,
Healthcare Reform ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Infrastructure ,
Presidential Elections ,
Public Transportation ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Tax Reform
Through the last several Administrations (Democrat and Republican) the mantra has been “we support an all-of-the-above strategy” to meet U.S. energy needs. Expect that to change. The Biden Administration’s focus will shift to...more
11/19/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Department of the Interior ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
FERC ,
Infrastructure ,
Outer Continental Shelf ,
Policy Drafting ,
Regulatory Reform
The Biden administration, now set to take office in January 2021, will face unprecedented challenges. These challenges, including the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump’s legal challenges to the election results, the call...more
11/11/2020
/ Arctic Drilling ,
Biden Administration ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Paris Agreement ,
Policy Drafting ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration
President-elect Biden will assume office in January, 2021, with a divided nation, the global coronavirus pandemic, and a domestic energy market in a distressed state. The new administration will need to oversee the management...more
11/10/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Land Management ,
Clean Energy ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Fracking ,
Infrastructure ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
National Monuments ,
NEPA ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Outer Continental Shelf ,
Policy Drafting ,
Public Land ,
Trump Administration
On 16 July, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) final rule, which largely shadows the proposed NEPA rule that was published in January of this year. As discussed...more
With storage pressure and pandemic-reduced demand driving oil prices into freefall, lessees of federal and Indian lands may consider turning to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) procedures...more
4/24/2020
/ Bureau of Indian Affairs ,
Bureau of Land Management ,
Contract Terms ,
Gas Royalties ,
Mineral Exploration ,
Mineral Leases ,
Mineral Leasing Act ,
Native American Issues ,
Oil & Gas ,
Tribal Governments ,
Tribal Lands
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) recently announced publication of its final Navigable Waters Protection Rule to define "Waters of the United...more
1/30/2020
/ Clean Water Act ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Final Rules ,
Inland Waterways ,
Manufacturing Facilities ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a cornerstone of environmental law that Congress enacted in 1970. NEPA celebrated its 50th anniversary earlier this month. NEPA has been the focus of extensive litigation and...more
1/15/2020
/ CEQ ,
Comment Period ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Assessments ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Tribal Governments ,
Trump Administration
On October 4, 2019, the Supreme Court granted review of a Fourth Circuit decision that rejected U.S. Forest Service authorization of a $7 billion natural gas pipeline. See Cowpasture River Pres. Assn v. Forest Service, 911...more
10/8/2019
/ Certiorari ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Violations ,
Forest Service ,
Midstream Contracts ,
Mineral Leases ,
National Parks ,
Natural Gas ,
NEPA ,
NFMA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oral Argument ,
Pipelines ,
Right of Way ,
SCOTUS ,
Upstream Contracts
There has been much coverage and misinformation in the public discourse regarding Interior’s recently-announced revisions of regulations to implement the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Doug Wheeler and Hilary Tompkins bring...more
9/9/2019
/ Critical Habitat ,
Department of the Interior ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
In a recent decision that inures to the benefit of the online gambling industry, a federal district court in New Hampshire held that the “the text, context, and structure of the Wire Act” limit its applicability to sports...more
On 24 July, 2018, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) instructed its personnel that the agency lacks authority to require monetary payments and other forms of compensatory mitigation as a condition of obtaining authorization...more
Yesterday, the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service (the Services) proposed in the Federal Register the first major regulatory reforms to the Endangered Species Act (ESA or Act) under the Trump...more
7/26/2018
/ Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), responsible for the oversight of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), is revising its NEPA regulations as part of the current administration’s efforts to streamline the...more
The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision last Tuesday affirmed the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in Patchak v. Zinke, holding that Congress through the Gun Lake Act, which reaffirms...more
3/9/2018
/ Appeals ,
Article III ,
Casinos ,
Dismissals ,
Governmental Immunity ,
Indian Gaming ,
Indian Reorganization Act ,
Jurisdiction ,
Lack of Authority ,
Land Owners ,
Land Trusts ,
Legislative Process ,
Patchak v Zinke ,
SCOTUS ,
Secretary of the Interior ,
Separation of Powers
The unveiling of the administration’s infrastructure initiative this week presents many opportunities to ensure that your interests are addressed as part of this landmark effort. Below is a high level summary of the...more
The Supreme Court (the Court) will soon address two recurring issues concerning administration of the Endangered Species Act, and more broadly the deference given to agency action in the discretionary exercise of statutory...more
1/30/2018
/ Commercial Property Owners ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Judicial Review ,
Land Owners ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Weyerhaeuser Company v United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The FCC has proposed to exclude so-called “Twilight Towers” from routine historic preservation review under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (“NHPA”) and its regulations. ...more
1/23/2018
/ Broadband ,
Cell Towers ,
Exclusions ,
FCC ,
Historical Landmarks ,
Infrastructure ,
Native American Issues ,
NHPA ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Telecommunications ,
Tribal Lands ,
Wireless Industry
Historical development on new tribal energy legislation in Congress that will empower tribes to approve rights-of-way, leases, and business agreements with private industry for mineral development on tribal lands.
...more
12/19/2017
/ Biomass ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of the Interior ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Hydropower ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Tribal Governments ,
Tribal Lands
In one of his earliest Executive Orders 13766, January 24, 2017, President Trump laid the groundwork for subsequent actions to help “Expedit[e] Environmental Reviews and Approvals for High Priority Infrastructure Projects.”...more
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Office of Energy Projects, recently issued its Guidelines for Reporting on Cultural Resources Investigations for Natural Gas Projects (Guidelines)....more
8/29/2017
/ Consultation ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
FERC ,
Historic Preservation ,
Liquid Natural Gas ,
Native American Issues ,
Natural Gas ,
Natural Gas Act ,
NHPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Tribal Lands