In recent years, local governments have imposed restrictions or outright bans on the use of natural gas in residential and some commercial buildings, mostly affecting new construction and grandfathering existing buildings....more
Last week, the 9th Circuit voted against rehearing en banc its decision from last April finding the City of Berkeley’s ban on natural gas connections in new construction to be preempted by the Energy Policy and Conservation...more
In April, a three-judge panel in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the City of Berkeley’s ordinance prohibiting natural gas infrastructure in new buildings was preempted by federal law. In June, Berkeley asked the...more
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) is gearing up for a massive regulatory effort aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the residential heating sector and the commercial and industrial...more
Last week, in California Restaurant Association v. City of Berkeley, the Ninth Circuit ruled the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) preempts local bans on the installation of natural gas infrastructure in new...more
On Monday, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals held that the City of Berkeley ordinance entitled “Prohibition of Natural Gas Infrastructure in New Buildings” was preempted by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. The relevant...more
Ohio et al. v. EPA, No. 22-1081, currently being briefed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, presents significant issues about the scope of federal and state sovereignty, the resolution of which could have...more
Last week, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that the Berkeley ordinance essentially banning use of natural gas in new construction was not preempted by the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. I’m not here to opine on the...more
On June 26 and 29, 2020, the petitioners in Union of Concerned Scientists v. NHTSA, Case No. 19-1230 (D.C. Cir.), filed briefs with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, arguing against the first...more
Yesterday, EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released the “Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule Part One: One National Program,” more succinctly known as the withdrawal of the...more
This week, the Department of Energy finalized regulations to increase energy efficiency for central air conditioners and heat pumps. The regulations apply to products manufactured or imported into the United States beginning...more