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
On February 15, 2024, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) released Massachusetts’ inaugural Environmental Justice Strategy (“EJ Strategy”), a comprehensive set of initiatives and...more
Good morning! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
REGULATORY ISSUES & UPDATES - Mandatory Climate Change Reporting Requirements Under the New European ESRS E1 - The implementation of the European Sustainability Reporting Standards poses risks for reporting companies,...more
Yesterday, Massachusetts Climate Chief Melissa Hoffer issued a report detailing how “to implement the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s whole-of-government approach to addressing the climate crisis.” The report identifies...more
On October 7, 2023, California Governor Newsom signed two landmark bills into law, Senate Bill (SB) 253 and SB-261, imposing new requirements on large companies doing business in California to publicly report their annual...more
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law two key climate bills as part of the California legislature’s broader Climate Accountability Package. The two laws—Senate Bill No. 253 (SB 253) and Senate Bill No. 261 (SB...more
The California State Senate and State Assembly recently approved two bills, Senate Bill 253 and Senate Bill 261, that could require thousands of companies doing business in California to disclose greenhouse gas ("GHG")...more
In the latest legislative session, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed two new bills directly impacting the siting and development of photovoltaic solar power generation facilities. Oregon House Bill (HB) 3179, which expands...more
Two unprecedented climate disclosure mandate bills cleared a formidable and critical legislative hurdle on the path to becoming law in California. And while much attention to date focused on a mandate to disclose...more
In a sweeping effort to expand affordable housing and combat homelessness, Representative Maxine Waters of California introduced a package of three bills on June 21 aimed at narrowing the country’s racial wealth gap....more
Two climate-related regulatory programs affecting business and industry in Washington state took effect on January 1, 2023. First, the Climate Commitment Act introduces an economywide emissions cap-and-invest program. Second,...more
Governor Gavin Newsom on Tuesday unveiled a 2023 state budget proposal that includes significant cuts to climate investments due to an estimated budget gap of $22.5 billion for the 2023-2024 fiscal year....more
On July 21, 2022, the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) adopted the Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities (CFEC) rules. DLCD then filed the permanent CFEC rules with the Oregon Secretary of State...more
I’m not much for apocalyptic thinking. I don’t think it’s productive. I have to confess, though, that this story about the Great Salt Lake got me thinking about whether human nature is such that the apocalypse is not that...more
Take my predictions with a grain of salt, because I still remember saying that Ronald Reagan would never fool enough voters to get elected, but it seems very likely at this point that Maura Healey will be the next Governor of...more
Continuing its leadership in the battle against climate change, California takes a big step forward by requiring transparency concerning the carbon footprints of the nation’s largest corporations doing business in the state. ...more
Governor John Bel Edwards announced in a January 31st news release that the Louisiana Climate Initiatives Task Force (“Task Force”) had unanimously approved the state’s first Climate Action Plan (“Plan”). The Task Force...more
On January 5, 2022, New York Governor Kathy Hochul delivered her first State of the State address, outlining in broad strokes her policy and fiscal agenda for the upcoming year. ...more
The City of San Diego’s approval of underground utility lines was incomplete because its Climate Action Plan checklist improperly allowed certain non-occupancy projects to avoid greenhouse gas emission (GHG) consistency...more
On Monday, December 20, 2021, for the second time in three years, the Washington State Legislature sued Governor Inslee over his line-item vetoes related to climate change policy. ...more
The 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), wrapped up earlier this month in Glasgow, Scotland, after two weeks of negotiations. While attention was focused on national pledges to reduce...more
After reviewing and responding to initial public comments, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) has issued its revised draft Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) Interim...more
Late last month, the Washington Legislature passed the “Climate Commitment Act”, a piece of sweeping climate legislation that includes, among other provisions, an economy-wide cap-and-trade system. Washington was not far...more
On March 1, the Transportation Climate Initiative jurisdictions released a draft “model rule” that would provide a template for individual state rules governing the operation of the TCI Program. Although only three states...more