The Senate on Thursday blocked California’s landmark plan to phase out the sale of new gasoline-powered vehicles, setting up a legal battle that could shape the electric car market in the United States. The consequences of...more
5/27/2025
/ California ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Governor Newsom ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Renewable Energy ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
The House passed resolutions last week to rescind federal waivers that allow California to set stricter vehicle emissions standards than the rest of the country. California’s standards currently require the sale of most...more
The Trump administration is taking steps to challenge California’s authority to set stricter vehicle emissions standards by targeting state rules that mandate the sale of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs). Last Friday, U.S....more
On Monday, January 13, 2025, California withdrew requests for Clean Air Act waivers from the EPA needed to support four recently adopted vehicle emissions regulations: 1) the Advanced Clean Fleets Regulations; 2) the In-Use...more
On December 12, 2024, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife released its draft Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan (Draft Conservation Plan) to the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission), as required by...more
12/23/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
California Fish and Game Commission ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Conservation ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Donald Trump ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Landfills ,
State and Local Government ,
Well Drilling
In a settlement approved by the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board on November 13, the City of Oceanside agreed to pay a $1.5 million fine for two separate spills that sent raw sewage into the Buena Vista Creek...more
11/25/2024
/ Agricultural Land ,
California ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
State and Local Government ,
Toxic Spills ,
Union Pacific ,
Water Quality Control Boards ,
Water Supplies
One of the Bay Area’s largest reservoirs is about to get bigger thanks to a partnership between local water agencies and the federal government. The San Luis Reservoir Dam, between Los Banos and Gilroy, will be raised 10 feet...more
11/18/2024
/ California ,
CARB ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Landfills ,
Low Carbon Fuel Standard ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Spills ,
State and Local Government ,
Wastewater ,
Water Supplies
Two weeks after setting a nationwide deadline for removal of lead pipes, the Biden administration is imposing strict new limits on dust from lead-based paint in older homes and child-care facilities....more
11/4/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Lead Paint ,
Net Zero ,
Plastics ,
Popular ,
Recycling ,
Refineries ,
State and Local Government ,
Wal-Mart
At its October 10 meeting, the California Fish and Game Commission (the Commission) unanimously found that a petition to list the western burrowing owl as an endangered or threatened species in California provides sufficient...more
10/14/2024
/ California ,
California Endangered Species Act ,
California Fish and Game Commission ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Joe Biden ,
Lead Poisoning ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Superfund ,
Tribal Governments ,
Tribal Lands ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Wastewater ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Quality
Governor Gavin Newsom on September 29 signed Assembly Bill (AB) 98 into law. The bill, which faced opposition from business groups, local governments, and environmental justice advocates, forbids cities and counties from...more
Farmers in southern Tulare County will face greater scrutiny for groundwater pumping after the state placed the region on probation following a lengthy hearing in Sacramento on Tuesday....more
9/20/2024
/ California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farms ,
Groundwater ,
Infrastructure ,
Natural Resources ,
PFAS ,
State and Local Government ,
Water ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Rights ,
Water Supplies
In an order filed Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle denied a private property owner’s effort to enjoin the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers from enforcing their September 2023...more
6/24/2024
/ California ,
DTSC ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fees ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Sackett v EPA ,
State and Local Government ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Waters of the United States
Republican attorneys general from 20 U.S. states sued the Biden administration on Tuesday, seeking to block new reforms to the U.S. environmental review process for major projects such as transmission lines and wind and solar...more
5/28/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
California ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Drought ,
Energy Projects ,
Farm Bureau ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
NEPA ,
State and Local Government ,
Water Rights ,
Wildlife Protection
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced a goal to protect and restore 8 million acres of wetlands over the next six years in an effort to counter development pressures and recently weakened federal regulations. The new...more
4/29/2024
/ California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Water Act ,
Coal Mines ,
Dams ,
Department of the Interior ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
State and Local Government ,
Wetlands
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today designated two types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have been used in cookware, carpets, and firefighting foams as hazardous substances, an action...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has stayed new climate-related disclosure requirements pending judicial review, the agency said on Thursday, after criticism from across the political spectrum. The SEC’s...more
4/8/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Clean Air Act ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Herbicides ,
PFAS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
State and Local Government ,
Stays ,
Water Supplies
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, California Chamber of Commerce, American Farm Bureau Federation, and other groups sued California on Tuesday in federal court over the most sweeping climate disclosure mandates in the nation,...more
2/5/2024
/ Agricultural Sector ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Dams ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Funding ,
Governor Newsom ,
PFAS ,
Salmon ,
State and Local Government ,
US-Mexico Border Wall ,
Wastewater
In a new study, researchers from NYU, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Defend Our Health have estimated the costs of plastic exposure on the U.S. healthcare system. In 2018, several common endocrine disruptors, a...more
1/22/2024
/ California ,
Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Drought ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Waste ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Supplies
A San Jerardo cooperative in the Salinas area, together with environmental organizations, have sued the state, demanding stricter rules to govern the amount of fertilizer farmers can use. They allege that nitrate...more
1/8/2024
/ California ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Farmers ,
Fertilizers ,
Food Supply ,
State and Local Government ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Water Quality Control Boards ,
Water Resources Control Board
Truck engine maker Cummins Inc. has agreed in principle to pay a $1.675 billion civil penalty for installing devices on hundreds of thousands of engines to allow them to emit excess pollution. According to the U.S. Department...more
1/8/2024
/ California ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Marine Life Protections ,
Pesticides ,
State and Local Government ,
Trucking Industry ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Well Drilling
The California 2023 Legislative Session ended on September 14, 2023 and presented Governor Gavin Newsom with several important changes to California’s water-related statutes. Newsom had until October 14, 2023 to sign all...more
10/23/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
Aircraft ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Governor Newsom ,
PFAS ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Rising Sea Levels ,
State and Local Government ,
Water Resources Control Board
Governor Gavin Newsom signed more than a dozen significant environmental bills over the weekend, including a first-in-the-nation law requiring corporations doing business in California with more than $1 billion a year in...more
10/16/2023
/ Air Quality Standards ,
California ,
Fines ,
Governor Newsom ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
New Legislation ,
Oil Spills ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Public Notice ,
State and Local Government ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Supplies
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a rule that will provide the agency, its partners, and the public with a dataset of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) manufactured and used in the...more
10/9/2023
/ Air Quality Standards ,
California ,
Clean Water Act ,
Drinking Water ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Oil Wells ,
PFAS ,
State and Local Government ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Wastewater
Macy’s has been ordered to pay $1.6 million for environmental violations across its 98 California stores to settle a lawsuit filed by district attorneys from 25 California counties and two city attorneys. Macy’s “illegally...more
10/2/2023
/ Air Quality Standards ,
California ,
Clean Air Act ,
Dams ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
eBay ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Landfills ,
Macy's ,
Oil Spills ,
Pesticides ,
State and Local Government ,
Warehouses
The Biden administration is restoring significant state and tribal authority over water resources and expanding their leverage on infrastructure permitting decisions, including for pipelines. With a final rule announced this...more
9/21/2023
/ California ,
Clean Water Act ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Gas Leaks ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Kaiser Permanente ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Lands