Kentucky v. Federal Highway Administration
A district court granted summary judgment for 21 states in a challenge to the Federal Highway Administration's (FHwA's) rule requiring each state to set declining targets for tailpipe carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from vehicles on the National Highway System. The states argued requiring automobile ...
Citizens for Clean Air & Clean Water in Brazoria County v. United States Department of Transportation
The Fifth Circuit denied environmental groups' petition to review DOT's approval of a license to construct and operate a large deepwater oil facility off the Texas coast. The groups argued the final EIS applied a "flawed" alternatives analysis and "grossly underestimated" the facility's environmenta...
Sierra Club v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
The D.C. Circuit denied an environmental group's petitions to review FERC's decision to grant time extensions for two developers to complete natural gas pipeline projects. The group argued FERC was too permissive in finding "good cause" to grant the extensions. The court found FERC followed its reas...
89 FR 25497
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration amended and updated its regulations for implementing NEPA, and incorporated updates to its categorical exclusions.
89 FR 25378
BLM finalized a rule to reduce the waste of natural gas from venting, flaring, and leaks during oil and gas production activities on federal and Indian leases and to ensure that, when federal or Indian gas is wasted, the public and Indian mineral owners are compensated for the wasted gas through royalty payments.
Climate Justice Litigation in the United States—A Primer
Over the last three decades, numerous studies have concluded that African American, Hispanic, Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and working-class White communities are disproportionately exposed to environmental harms and risks. More recent studies have concluded that although the adverse effects of climate change are being felt throughout the United States, they are not evenly distributed. This Article explores how several states have initiated climate justice litigation to address this issue.
The Promise and Peril of State Corporate Climate Disclosure Laws
On October 7, 2023, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the most far-reaching corporate climate disclosure (CCD) requirements in the United States. This so-called California Climate Accountability Package consists of the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (Senate Bill (SB) 253), which requires certain companies to disclose greenhouse gas emission data, and the Climate-Related Financial Risk Act (SB 261), which requires certain companies to disclose climate-related financial risks.
Loper Bright/Relentless and the Future of Administrative Law
On January 17, the U.S. Supreme Court heard argument in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce.