On 16 July, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) final rule, which largely shadows the proposed NEPA rule that was published in January of this year. As discussed...more
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a cornerstone of environmental law that Congress enacted in 1970. NEPA celebrated its 50th anniversary earlier this month. NEPA has been the focus of extensive litigation and...more
1/15/2020
/ CEQ ,
Comment Period ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Assessments ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Tribal Governments ,
Trump Administration
There has been much coverage and misinformation in the public discourse regarding Interior’s recently-announced revisions of regulations to implement the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Doug Wheeler and Hilary Tompkins bring...more
9/9/2019
/ Critical Habitat ,
Department of the Interior ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
On 24 July, 2018, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) instructed its personnel that the agency lacks authority to require monetary payments and other forms of compensatory mitigation as a condition of obtaining authorization...more
Yesterday, the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service (the Services) proposed in the Federal Register the first major regulatory reforms to the Endangered Species Act (ESA or Act) under the Trump...more
7/26/2018
/ Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
ESA Listings ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), responsible for the oversight of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), is revising its NEPA regulations as part of the current administration’s efforts to streamline the...more
The Supreme Court (the Court) will soon address two recurring issues concerning administration of the Endangered Species Act, and more broadly the deference given to agency action in the discretionary exercise of statutory...more
1/30/2018
/ Commercial Property Owners ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Judicial Review ,
Land Owners ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Weyerhaeuser Company v United States Fish and Wildlife Service
In one of his earliest Executive Orders 13766, January 24, 2017, President Trump laid the groundwork for subsequent actions to help “Expedit[e] Environmental Reviews and Approvals for High Priority Infrastructure Projects.”...more