On September 21, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Ninth Circuit) stayed a July 5, 2022 order of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (District Court) vacating several...more
On August 11, 2020, a federal district court in New York ruled that the unintentional or incidental “take” of migratory birds is a crime under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”), vacating a Department of the Interior...more
8/12/2020
/ Department of the Interior ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Incidental Take Permits ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Strict Liability ,
Trump Administration ,
Vacated
On June 4, 2020, President Trump signed an executive order to provide federal agencies the foundation to speed up environmental permitting in the wake of COVID-19. ...more
6/12/2020
/ Clean Water Act ,
Construction Project ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Development ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Infrastructure ,
Marine Life Protections ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Trump Administration
Yesterday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) released a pre-publication version of its long-awaited update to regulations governing Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) implementation (Proposed Regulations)....more
1/31/2020
/ Comment Period ,
Department of the Interior ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Policies ,
Incidental Take Permits ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
NEPA ,
Notice of Intent ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Strict Liability ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Wind Farm ,
Wind Power
Yesterday, the Trump Administration announced its long-awaited release of updates to National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) implementation regulations (Regulations)....more
1/10/2020
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Comment Period ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Review ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration
More than a year after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively, Services) published proposals to revise several Endangered Species Act (ESA) implementing...more
8/13/2019
/ Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
OIRA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Takings ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The longest partial government shutdown in United States history is taking its toll on Endangered Species Act (ESA) policy initiatives championed by the Trump Administration, and is making ESA compliance and project...more
1/25/2019
/ Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Federal Budget ,
Federal Funding ,
Government Shutdown ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
US-Mexico Border Wall
On December 28, 2018, the Department of the Interior (DOI) published proposed changes to its rules governing how it processes requests for records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and provided a 30-day timeframe in...more
1/18/2019
/ Comment Period ,
Department of the Interior ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Federal Budget ,
Federal Funding ,
FOIA ,
Government Shutdown ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Request For Information ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US-Mexico Border Wall
In recent weeks, the Trump Administration and Congress have proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”) and its implementing regulations. ...more
7/25/2018
/ Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Legislative Agendas ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
On April 26, 2017, President Trump signed Executive Order 13792, Review of Designations Under the Antiquities Act (“Order”), which requires the Secretary of the Interior (“Secretary”) to review all Presidential designations...more