The National Environmental Policy Act has drawn congressional and presidential frustration for long over a decade and the regulations of the body it created—the Council on Environmental Quality—have often been caught in the...more
4/22/2025
/ Department of Environmental Quality ,
Deregulation ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Judicial Review ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Trump Administration
On March 20, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order (“EO”) entitled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production. The EO builds on previous energy-focused actions taken by the Administration, and...more
4/2/2025
/ Defense Production Act ,
Department of the Interior ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Energy Policy ,
Executive Orders ,
Export-Import Bank of the US ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Mining ,
Permits ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Reform ,
SBA ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration
On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued several Executive Orders and memoranda (the “EOs”) signaling a significant policy shift favoring robust and market-based energy production (mostly relying on fossil fuels), while...more
1/27/2025
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Defense Production Act ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Infrastructure ,
Investment Tax Credits ,
Liquid Natural Gas ,
Mineral Exploration ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Reform
On January 3, 2025, the IRS and Treasury issued long-awaited final regulations (the “45V Final Regulations”) implementing the clean hydrogen production tax credit (the “45V Credit”) under Section 45V of the Internal Revenue...more
1/14/2025
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Clean Energy ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Production Tax Credit ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Renewable Energy ,
Tax Credits ,
U.S. Treasury
Complaint filed United States District Court, Eastern District of Texas (Case No. 6:24-cv-00507) -
KEY TAKEAWAYS -
The States of Texas and Utah, together with private developer Last Energy, have sued to exempt certain...more
1/10/2025
/ Administrative Procedure ,
Chevron Deference ,
Clean Energy ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Innovative Technology ,
Licensing Rules ,
Nuclear Power ,
Nuclear Regulatory Commission ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State and Local Government
Republicans have swept the 2024 elections, returning Donald Trump to the White House as the 47th President and flipping the Senate to a Republican majority. Having narrowly maintained control of the House of Representatives,...more
12/11/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Affordable Care Act ,
Affordable Housing ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Canada ,
Capital Formation ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
China ,
Clean Air Act ,
Colleges ,
Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Privacy ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Deregulation ,
Digital Assets ,
Drinking Water ,
Drug Pricing ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Exports ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Fraud ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Healthcare ,
Imports ,
Infrastructure ,
Lead ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Mergers ,
Mexico ,
Money Laundering ,
NAFTA ,
National Institute of Health (NIH) ,
Nuclear Power ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Offshore Wind ,
Oil & Gas ,
PFAS ,
Popular ,
Social Media ,
Tariffs ,
Tax Cuts ,
Technology ,
Transparency ,
Trump Administration ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
Universities ,
Waivers
U.S. Supreme Court overrules Chevron and restores courts’ obligation to exercise independent judgment -
On June 28, 2024, in one of the last decisions of the Term, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in...more
Hydrogen is a key ingredient in any country’s future energy plans. In the United States, the hydrogen sector is on the launch pad, ready for lift-off. However, its trajectory hinges on a critical question: what criteria...more
7/31/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EU ,
Greenwashing ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
IRS ,
Renewable Energy ,
Tax Code ,
Tax Credits
The United States recently took another important step in implementing a comprehensive strategy to advance the production, processing, delivery, storage, and use of clean hydrogen. On June 5, 2023, the Biden-Harris...more
6/12/2023
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Popular ,
Renewable Energy ,
Tax Credits
On May 31, 2023, the IRS released Notice 2023-44 (the “Notice”) providing additional guidance on the advanced energy project tax credit (Section 48C), effectively reintroduced by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”). ...more
The gas stove wars continue to heat up. On April 17, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit took a stand and ruled that the City of Berkeley does not have the authority to prohibit connecting natural...more
President Biden issued an Executive Order on April 21, 2023 titled “Revitalizing Our Nation’s Commitment to Environmental Justice for All” (the “EO”). The EO continues the Administration’s emphasis on environmental justice by...more
5/3/2023
/ Clean Air Act ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Hazardous Substances ,
NEPA ,
NGOs ,
OSTP ,
Pollution Control ,
Right To Know ,
Transparency
Applications For Leading Edge Commercial Fabrication Facilities And For Current-Generation Facilities Accepted Beginning March 31, 2023 And June 26, 2023, Respectively -
On August 9, 2022, President Joseph R. Biden signed...more
Not a day seems to go by in recent weeks without multiple articles and media hits on controversies over gas stoves. Across the U.S., opponents of gas stoves have implemented a coordinated effort by government regulators,...more
2/27/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Apartments ,
Clean Air Act ,
Commercial Buildings ,
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Proposed Rules ,
Single Family Housing ,
State and Local Government
On August 9, 2022, President Joseph R. Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 (the “CHIPS Plus Act”). As enacted, the CHIPS Plus Act amends legislation and appropriates funding for semiconductor incentives originally...more
On July 13, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued Notices of Intent indicating that the agency will begin soliciting applications in the coming months for funding support for two programs involving carbon capture,...more
In November 2021, “[t]he United States House of Representatives passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a once-in-generation bipartisan infrastructure bill that will create millions of jobs, turn the climate crisis...more
1/27/2022
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) ,
Investment ,
Lithium Batteries ,
Nuclear Power ,
Power Grid ,
Renewable Energy
On December 28, 2021, CMS announced that it would resume enforcement of its COVID-19 vaccine mandate for healthcare providers in areas not covered by injunctions issued by federal courts. As of December 15, 2021, federal...more
1/5/2022
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
Enforcement ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Injunctions ,
OSHA ,
Popular ,
Vaccinations ,
Virus Testing
Last Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court announced it would hear oral arguments on January 7, 2022, regarding the legality of two federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates issued under the Biden administration. The justices will be...more
On Wednesday, December 15, 2021, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the federal government’s petition for a stay pending appeal of the preliminary injunction issued by a federal district court in Louisiana that...more
12/22/2021
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Mandates ,
En Banc Review ,
Enforcement ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
OSHA ,
Popular ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Vaccinations
Climate Change Litigation on the Horizon with Trump Environmental Overhaul -
On July 16, 2020, President Trump’s Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) published the long-awaited final rule revising the implementing...more
9/18/2020
/ CEQ ,
CFIUS ,
Climate Change ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Debt Restructuring ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreclosure ,
Foreign Investment ,
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) ,
Indonesia ,
Infrastructure ,
Joint Venture ,
Middle East ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
OPEC ,
Petrochemicals ,
PFAS ,
Pipelines ,
Russia ,
Saudi Arabia ,
Solar Farm ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
United Arab Emirates (UAE) ,
Waste-to-Energy ,
Wind Farm
On July 16, 2020, President Trump’s Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) published the long-awaited final rule revising the implementing regulations for the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”). 85 Fed. Reg. 43,304...more
7/22/2020
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
CEQ ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Final Rules ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Solar Farm ,
Wind Farm
U.S. Government’s Continued Focus on Large Ship Air Emissions -
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Coast Guard (“USCG”) continue to signal interest in addressing air pollution from large ships...more
2/14/2020
/ Air Pollution ,
Air Quality Standards ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Midstream Contracts ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Tax Credits ,
Transportation Industry ,
Vessels
Agency consideration of climate change curtailed in update to decades-old policy -
On January 9, 2020, President Trump’s Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) proposed to “update” the nearly forty-year-old regulations...more
1/16/2020
/ CEQ ,
Climate Change ,
Comment Period ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
NEPA ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process
CMS and its contractors have announced that beginning January 1, 2020, the agency will repay hospitals for underpaid evaluation and management (E/M) services provided in excepted off-campus provider-based departments during...more