On March 14, 2025, President Trump signed legislation disapproving the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulation implementing the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax on methane emissions from the oil and gas sector. The Joint...more
After little more than a week in office, there is still plenty of speculation, but priorities of the Trump 2.0 Administration are becoming more concrete. Issuance of three energy-focused Executive Orders (Unleashing American...more
1/30/2025
/ Affirmative Action ,
Alaska ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Department of the Interior ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
FERC ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
OMB ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Trump Administration
The incoming Trump Administration is expected to prioritize the rollback of Biden-era endangered species regulations, aiming to reduce the regulatory burden on land-intensive businesses and enhance energy independence. This...more
1/10/2025
/ Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Wildlife Protection
In 2020, President-elect Donald Trump promised to ensure that “America’s most critical infrastructure projects” would not be “tied up and bogged down by an outrageously slow and burdensome federal approval process.” Much of...more
12/19/2024
/ Audubon Society ,
Biden Administration ,
CEQ ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Government Agencies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
National Environmental Policies ,
NEPA ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rescission ,
Trump Administration
During the 2024 campaign, President-elect Donald Trump promised his supporters that he would direct federal agencies on day one to “immediately remove every single burdensome regulation driving up the cost of goods.” For the...more
12/5/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Biden Administration ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Congressional Review Act ,
COP ,
Deregulation ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
PFAS ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) Policy ,
Trump Administration ,
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC)
With any new Presidential administration come questions about what will change in terms of policy and law—and how quickly. Join Vinson & Elkins for an insightful program where we will discuss the expectations and procedural...more
Join attorneys in our appellate, energy regulatory, environmental, tax, securities, and employment practices who will explore how these landmark rulings affect administrative law and practice and what comes next....more
7/10/2024
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Chevron Deference ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Corner Post Inc v Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ,
Government Agencies ,
Jury Trial ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Penalties ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC v Jarkesy ,
Securities Fraud ,
Seventh Amendment ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statutory Authority ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Webinars
For more than a decade, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) has been able to bring enforcement actions in either federal court or the agency’s internal venue. Not anymore. On June 27, 2024, the U.S....more
7/1/2024
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Article III ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Jury Trial ,
Public Rights Doctrine ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC v Jarkesy ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Seventh Amendment
On May 1, 2024, the Council on Environmental Quality (“CEQ”) published the final version of Phase 2 of its National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) rulemaking (“Phase 2 Rule”). The Phase 2 Rule is the culmination of the...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a host of new requirements for fossil-fueled power plants, including new source performance standards (“NSPS”) for new and modified coal- and gas-fired plants and...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a final rule (the “Rule”) that substantially expands its Risk Management Program (“RMP”) regulations aimed at preventing chemical accidents. The Rule takes effect on...more
On February 8, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published two proposed rules that would expand its regulatory authority over PFAS: one to list nine PFAS as hazardous constituents subject to the Resource...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a host of new obligations for upstream and midstream oil and gas owners and operators. These new source performance standards (“NSPS”) and emission guidelines (“EG”) for...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released proposed and final rules that will regulate methane emissions from oil and gas operations, implement a methane emissions tax, and change greenhouse gas reporting...more
2/23/2024
/ Continuing Legal Education ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Events ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Proposed Rules ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning
On February 12, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) released its final rule revising its permit regulations for “take” under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (BGEPA), an overhaul that has been several...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has published a proposed rule to assess and collect billions of dollars in methane “waste emission charges” from the oil and gas sector....more
As part of its Federal Sustainability Plan, the Biden administration has issued a proposed rule that would revise the Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) to incentivize federal government buyers to prioritize the...more
9/12/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Comment Period ,
ENERGY STAR Program ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Green Guides ,
Omnibus Guidance ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Proposed Rules ,
Sustainability
On August 29, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) released the text of a rule further revising the definition of “waters of the United States” (“WOTUS”) that the...more
9/7/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Construction Project ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Inland Waterways ,
Land Developers ,
Rapanos v US ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
Welcome to Vinson & Elkins’ Securities and ESG Updates. Our aim is to provide insights into notable developments in securities reporting and the environmental, social and governance space over the quarter and, where...more
7/13/2023
/ C&DIs ,
Climate Change ,
COSO ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Diversity ,
Divestment ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenwashing ,
Nasdaq ,
No-Action Letters ,
NYSE ,
Proxy Season ,
Repurchases ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholders ,
Universal Proxy Cards
On June 3, 2023, President Biden signed into law the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (“the Act”), which includes modest changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”), among other things. The Act amends NEPA in...more
Environmental Justice (“EJ”) continues to be a strong focus of both the federal and state governments with two major developments occurring in the past two weeks. On April 21, 2023, President Biden signed Executive Order...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) has proposed regulating six per- and polyfluoroalkyl (“PFAS”) in drinking water under the Safe Drinking Water Act (“SDWA”). In a proposed rule published on March 29, 2023, EPA...more
Environmental Justice (“EJ”) continued to prove a major focus of the Biden administration in 2022. With wide-ranging initiatives across several federal agencies, the administration worked to strengthen enforcement, release...more
2/2/2023
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Clean Air Act ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
FERC ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Natural Gas Act ,
Title VI
The Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) announced it will continue to prioritize enforcement of, and compliance with, the Safe Drinking Water Act (“SDWA”) and federal drinking water regulations through Fiscal Year (“FY”)...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) has launched a new national office tasked with enforcing EPA-related civil rights laws in disadvantaged communities and overseeing billions of dollars earmarked for environmental...more