On-Demand Webinar | Regulatory Uncertainty and Linear Infrastructure Projects: Where Are We and What’s Ahead?
On-Demand Webinar | Linear Infrastructure Redux: Adapting Your Projects to Meet the New Regulatory Climate
On September 4, 2024, the Center for Biological Diversity, along with more than 20 other groups, (collectively, CBD) delivered a petition (Petition) to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) in which CBD requested the...more
Last month, in 89 FR 9920, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS”) published a final rule revising the eagle take permit (“ETP”) process. USFWS believes the new rule will encourage more participation in the ETP program...more
The Center for Biological Diversity and two other organizations (collectively “CBD”) submitted a June 8th Petition to the United States Department of Interior and United States Fish and Wildlife Service (collectively “USFWS”)...more
The already-complicated relationship between wind energy and eagles has taken center stage recently. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is ramping up its efforts to protect bald and golden eagles at development...more
A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) final rule that presumptively reinstates liability for incidental take under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”) becomes effective on December 3. The new rule revokes a Trump-era...more
On Oct. 4, 2021, the Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) issued a final rule, effective Dec. 3, 2021, restoring the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”) to prohibit the incidental take of migratory birds. The interpretation and...more
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service revoked its January 7, 2021, rule defining the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act as it applies to conduct that results in the injury or death of protected migratory birds. Revocation of...more
On October 4, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published a revision of its interpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). With the final rule, FWS has effectively reinstated its position that “incidental...more
In the last few weeks, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has published several major regulatory actions affecting federal avian protections. The Service has repealed a Trump-era rule that excluded incidental take...more
After a brief hiatus, incidental take of migratory birds will again be a federal crime beginning December 3, 2021. Less than 10 months after instituting a final rule declaring that incidental take of birds is not subject to...more
Congressman Alan Lowenthal (CA-47) and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) recently introduced the Migratory Bird Protection Act (“Proposed Act”). The two sponsors and various allied supporters state that the...more
This week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS”) announced the availability of two revised economic analysis documents related to the agency’s proposed rule concerning incidental take under the Migratory Bird Treaty...more
In May, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“Service”) announced a proposed rule revoking the Trump administration’s final rule on incidental take under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”). In the January 7, 2021 final...more
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) issued a proposed rule to revoke the Service’s January 7, 2021, final rule defining the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) as it applies to conduct resulting in the...more
On May 7, 2021, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS” or “Service”) published a proposed rule that would restore the traditional interpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”) as prohibiting incidental take...more
Last week, the Fish and Wildlife Service issued a proposed rule that would revoke the rule promulgated by the Trump Administration in January 2021 and return to the prior status quo, in which the incidental take of birds...more
On May 7, 2021, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), as many anticipated, published a proposed rule to revoke a Trump Administration rule impacting the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The Trump...more
The regulation of protected wildlife is likely to undergo a seismic shift as a result of the change in administrations. Whereas the Trump Administration took several actions to narrow the reach of wildlife protection...more
The Biden administration has signaled its intention to recriminalize non-purposeful, or incidental, “takes” of birds under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA”). The longstanding debate over the scope of criminal liability...more
The Biden Administration is moving quickly to undo the Trump Administration’s Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) liability rule. Published as a final rule on January 7, 2021, this rule for the first time supplied a uniform...more
Recent news that the Democrats flipped both U.S. Senate seats in Georgia’s run-off election means that the Democrats have enough votes to add the Congressional Review Act (CRA)[1] to the tools that could be used to advance...more
On January 20, 2021, President Biden announced his administration will review regulatory actions taken between January 17, 2020 and January 20, 2021 in accordance with an Executive Order titled “Protecting Public Health and...more
On 7 January 2021, the Trump administration finalized a new rule that limits the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA or the Act). Under the new rule (which President Biden has already directed the Department of the...more
On January 7, 2021, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) published a final rule limiting the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA)’s prohibition on the take of migratory birds....more
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS” or “the Service”) recently announced the final rule defining “the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (“MBTA” or “Act”) as it applies to conduct resulting in the injury...more