On December 15, 2020, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service (collectively, the agencies) released a pre-publication version of a final rule providing a definition of “habitat” for the...more
12/17/2020
/ Conservation ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The Sacramento Superior Court upheld a challenge to a decision by the California Fish and Game Commission to designate four subspecies of bumble bees as candidates for protection under the California Endangered Species Act...more
The California Fish and Game Commission deferred the decision on whether to make the western Joshua tree a candidate for listing to a special meeting in September 2020. In a hearing on August 20, 2020, the Commission heard a...more
The Departments of Commerce and the Interior (Departments) have completed a proposed rule to define the term “habitat” as that term is used in the context of designating “critical habitat” under section 7(a)(2) of the...more
Over the past decade, proponents of an effort to remove four dams on the lower Klamath River have hit a series of roadblocks. The most recent came on July 16, 2020, when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) voted...more
7/21/2020
/ Agricultural Land ,
Critical Habitat ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Farms ,
FERC ,
Inland Waterways ,
Native American Issues ,
Natural Resources ,
Popular ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Lands ,
Water Rights
Paul Weiland recently participated in the 2020 California Water Law Symposium, held at San Francisco's Golden Gate University School of Law. The theme of this year's Symposium was "Federalism & Water: Shifts in State/Federal...more
3/10/2020
/ Agricultural Land ,
Critical Habitat ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Farms ,
Inland Waterways ,
Native American Issues ,
Natural Resources ,
Regulatory Reform ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Governments ,
Tribal Lands ,
Water Rights
On February 21, 2020, the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) voted 4-0 to adopt a new Delta fisheries management policy and a revised Striped bass policy supported by Commission staff and the Department of Fish...more
The State of California recently sent a 60-day notice of intent to sue to the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior and concurrently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California...more
2/27/2020
/ Central Valley ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Infrastructure ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Natural Resources ,
Notice of Intent ,
Secretary of Commerce ,
Secretary of the Interior ,
State and Local Government ,
Water ,
Water Quality Control Boards ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Supplies
On February 19, 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation issued a Record of Decision (ROD) on the reinitiation of consultation on the coordinated long-term operations of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project. At the...more
2/26/2020
/ Bureau of Reclamation ,
Central Valley ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Governor Newsom ,
Groundwater Management Plan ,
State and Local Government ,
State Water Project ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Water ,
Water Conservation ,
Water Supplies
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit recently affirmed a lower court decision that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers need not consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under section 7 of the...more
On January 15, 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed a lower court decision that upheld the determination of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) denying a petition to delist the...more
1/16/2020
/ Appeals ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Delisting ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Reversal ,
Rulemaking Process ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
On November 21, 2019, the California Secretary for Natural Resources announced California’s decision to sue the federal government over its biological opinions for continuing operations of the California State Water Project...more
On June 26, 2019, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Kisor v. Wilkie (No. 18-15), a case concerning what level of deference courts owe to federal agency interpretations of their own regulations. The issue before the...more
6/28/2019
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Ambiguous ,
Appeals ,
Auer Deference ,
Kisor v Wilkie ,
Reasonable Interpretations ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Stare Decisis ,
Vacated ,
Veterans' Benefits
The Center for Biological Diversity and Mountain Lion Foundation submitted a petition to the California Fish and Game Commission (the “Commission”) to list mountain lions (Puma concolor) in southern and central California as...more
On June 12, 2019, the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) voted 3-1 that listing four subspecies of bumble bee may be warranted under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA).? ...more
On May 3, 2019, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“Service”) published a proposed rule to downlist the American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus) from endangered to threatened....more
With recent changes in state and federal leadership, as well as continuing developments from the Trump Administration, this seminar is a must-attend event for anyone involved in land use, zoning, environmental permitting,...more
4/18/2019
/ CEQA ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Site Assessment ,
Events ,
Land Use Restrictions ,
Public Projects ,
Real Estate Development ,
Rising Sea Levels ,
Sea Levels ,
Waters of the United States ,
Zoning Laws
In an article published online this week in BioScience, the American Institute of Biological Sciences’ scholarly journal, Drs. Dennis Murphy and Paul Weiland contribute to the literature on independent scientific review,...more
On November 27, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an area is eligible to be designated as “critical habitat” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) only if the area is habitat for the relevant threatened or endangered...more
11/30/2018
/ Appeals ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Economic Impact Analysis ,
Endangered Species ,
ESA Listings ,
Judicial Review ,
Private Property ,
SCOTUS ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Weyerhaeuser Company v United States Fish and Wildlife Service
In WildEarth Guardians et al. v. U.S. Department of Justice, Case Nos. 17-16677, 17-16678, 17-16679 (Oct. 23, 2018), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dismissed plaintiff-appellees case challenging the U.S....more
10/26/2018
/ Appeals ,
Article III ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Jury Instructions ,
Standard of Proof ,
Standing ,
Strict Liability ,
Takings Clause
The Klamath River Renewal Corporation (the “corporation”) recently submitted a plan for the removal of four dams on the lower Klamath River to the Federal Energy Regulation Commission (FERC). ...more
7/24/2018
/ Agricultural Land ,
Critical Habitat ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Farms ,
FERC ,
Inland Waterways ,
Native American Issues ,
Natural Resources ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Lands ,
Water Rights
The U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico granted New Mexico’s motion for summary judgment in a case brought by the Humane Society seeking to invalidate State trapping regulations related to cougars (Puma...more
In late May 2018, the Klamath Tribes filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California seeking to shut down the Bureau of Reclamation’s Klamath Irrigation Project, which supplies...more
6/7/2018
/ Agricultural Land ,
California Endangered Species Act ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Dams ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Farms ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Inland Waterways ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Native American Issues ,
Natural Resources ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Reform ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Lands ,
Water Rights
On April 19, 2018, the California Fish and Game Commission voted 4-0 to list the tricolored blackbird (Agelaius tricolor) as a threatened species. A statewide survey conducted in 2017 estimated the California population of...more
In Friends of the River v. National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California rejected challenges to Army Corps of Engineers and National Marine Fisheries Service decisions...more
2/28/2018
/ Critical Habitat ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Claims ,
Hydropower ,
Inland Waterways ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Popular ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water Diversion ,
Watershed