On June 28, in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, the Supreme Court overruled its landmark decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which gave rise to the Chevron doctrine. The Chevron case, decided in...more
On Nov. 3, 2023, the U.S. Forest Service issued a proposed rule to amend its special use regulations to authorize carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration on National Forest System (NFS) lands (both national forests and...more
Supreme Court to hear case that could change landmark precedent -
Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that during its next term it will hear a case that could overturn Chevron, U.S.A., Inc. v. NRDC, 467...more
USFS Seeks Comment on Array of Forest Conservation and Resilience Policy Issues -
Earlier this week, the U.S. Forest Service (Forest Service) published an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking public...more
On Aug. 16, 2022, President Joe Biden signed the $750 billion Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. Originally introduced as the Build Back Better Act in September of 2021, this cornerstone of the Biden legislative agenda...more
1/11/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Tax Incentives ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Investment Tax Credits ,
IRS ,
Popular ,
Renewable Energy ,
Renewable Energy Incentives ,
Tax Credits
On Wednesday, April 20, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published a final rule completing the first stage of rulemaking to revise certain provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act’s (NEPA) implementing...more
On Tuesday, March 8, the White House announced it was further strengthening the sanctions on Russia, with President Biden scheduled to sign an Executive Order (EO) banning U.S. imports of Russian oil, liquefied natural gas...more
Earlier this week, President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R.3684) into law.
On Nov. 5, the House passed the bill by a vote of 228-206. Thirteen Republicans joined most...more
11/18/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Bureau of Indian Affairs ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Federal Budget ,
Infrastructure ,
New Legislation ,
Tribal Government Programs ,
Tribal Lands
Earlier this week the Senate began consideration of the bipartisan infrastructure bill. Energy and environment, water and tribal provisions included in the bipartisan package are outlined below.
This week, the Senate...more
On June 11, the Biden administration released its first Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, an outline of agency priorities released every fall and spring. The unified agendas set nonbinding goals...more
The White House released its findings on June 8 from the 100-day assessment of critical supply chains. In general, the report identified immediate and longer-term actions to bolster domestic manufacturing of critical goods,...more
On May 29, 2021, the Biden administration released its full FY2022 budget request. Several key energy and environmental agencies, including the Department of the Interior (DOI), Department of Energy (DOE) and the...more
On May 26, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“Service”) released their proposal to list two distinct population segments (DPS) of the lesser prairie-chicken under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Currently, the Service is...more
Today the Department of the Interior released their report “Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful,” which outlines the first steps to conserve 30% of lands and waters by 2030. The 30 by 30 conservation initiative is...more
WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK -
- Republican Counterproposal. Senate Republicans are crafting a counter-proposal as an alternative to President Joe Biden’s American Jobs Plan (AJP). The package is expected to cost around $600 to...more
5/5/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Federal Budget ,
Infrastructure ,
New Legislation ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Credits
Congress recently voted on a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package—the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA, P.L.117-2). It includes stimulus checks for individuals, expanded unemployment benefits, and funding for vaccines, state...more
WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK -
- White House Selling AJP. As the administration seeks to gain bipartisan support for its American Jobs Plan (AJP), President Joe Biden will be holding a series of meetings with lawmakers to discuss...more
5/5/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Federal Budget ,
Infrastructure ,
New Legislation ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Credits
Fluctuating water supply and reliability throughout the U.S. has the potential to have major implications for rural communities, farmers, agricultural operators, ranchers, forest owners, and other stakeholders. Adapting to...more
4/23/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Bioenergy ,
Biofuel ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Forestry ,
Paris Agreement ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
USDA ,
Wildfires
WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK -
- Administration Proposal. President Joe Biden will travel to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on March 31, where he will unveil the contours of the infrastructure package. Biden Preliminary Budget...more
Note: Congress recently voted on a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package—the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA, P.L.117-2). It includes stimulus checks for individuals, expanded unemployment benefits, and funding for vaccines,...more
4/14/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Biden Administration ,
Carbon Taxes ,
Clean Energy ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Energy Storage ,
Federal Budget ,
Popular ,
Relief Measures ,
Tax Credits ,
Wind Farm
On March 2, 2021, the House Energy and Commerce Committee introduced H.R.1512 (117), the “Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for our Nation’s Future Act” or the “CLEAN Future Act.” The committee first unveiled the...more
Among other broad policy objectives intertwined in President Biden’s “Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad” is the direction to the secretary of the interior to “pause new oil and natural gas...more
As of Nov. 7, 2020, former Vice President Joe Biden became the presumptive president-elect of the United States according to projections made by the Associated Press and various other media outlets. The change in...more
On Jan. 23, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released revised rules defining what constitute waters of the United States under federal Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction. The rule, entitled the Navigable Water...more
1/27/2020
/ Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Groundwater ,
Jurisdiction ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
Renewable energy on public lands may receive a boost from legislation introduced by Reps. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and Mike Levin (D-CA) on July 17....more