A chain of events that started on Inauguration Day culminated with the June 30, 2025, withdrawal of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations that have, since the 1970s, structured decision-making processes at the...more
Key Takeaways -
-The Department of the Interior approved the reactivation of the Velvet-Wood uranium and vanadium mine using new emergency procedures issued pursuant to President Trump’s Executive Order 14156, which declared...more
The Supreme Court of the United States’ opinion, issued May 29, 2025, in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado, reaffirms the Court’s earlier, seminal decisions expounding judicial review under the...more
6/4/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Judicial Review ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Authority ,
SCOTUS ,
Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v Eagle County Colorado ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Surface Transportation Board ,
Transportation Industry
On April 24, 2025, the Trump Administration issued an Executive Order aimed at fast-tracking deep-sea mining. ...more
The Trump administration’s efforts to satisfy the United States’ need for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure further advanced when the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or department) issued an anticipated Request for...more
Continuing the administration’s strategy to enhance domestic mining and processing of minerals and to minimize the United States’ reliance on imports, on March 20, 2025, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order (EO)...more
On February 19, 2025, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) submitted to the Federal Register an interim final rule rescinding its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, which have been the foundation for...more
2/21/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
CEQ ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Final Rules ,
NEPA ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process
By directing the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to propose rescinding CEQ’s National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, President Donald Trump’s executive order on “Unleashing American Energy” affects not...more
1/23/2025
/ CEQ ,
Clean Energy ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements
A split panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit landed an unexpected blow on the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on November 12, ruling that CEQ lacked authority to promulgate its umbrella...more
Notwithstanding supply chain challenges, canceled power purchase agreements, and general economic and political uncertainty, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has continued its push to implement its renewable...more
The Supreme Court of the United States announced on June 24, 2024, that it will review a case that could have major ramifications for the development of U.S. infrastructure projects. In Seven County Infrastructure Coalition...more
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) finalized its Phase Two revisions to its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) implementing regulations on April 30, 2024, following an effort initiated in 2021 to “revise,...more
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published a proposed sale notice for an offshore wind energy lease auction in Oregon on May 1, 2024.[1] The Oregon lease sale is anticipated to occur in October 2024. Comments on...more
5/3/2024
/ BOEM ,
Clean Energy ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Assessments ,
New Legislation ,
Offshore Lease ,
Offshore Wind ,
Oregon ,
Renewable Energy ,
Wind Power
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced on January 17, 2024, the publication of its draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to help streamline and accelerate utility-scale solar energy development...more
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published the Notice of Availability on January 12, 2024, for the draft programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) on offshore wind energy development activities in the New...more
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published on December 20, 2023, its notice of intent (NOI) to prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) of reasonably foreseeable impacts of floating offshore...more
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) proposed to amend its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures on November 16, 2023, to include a new categorical exclusion for certain energy storage systems and to expand its...more
11/28/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Energy ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Sector ,
Energy Storage ,
Infrastructure ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Solar Energy
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has proposed further amendments to its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) implementing regulations as part of its phased rulemaking initiated in 2021. The proposed Bipartisan...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an opinion on June 16, 2023, speaking to several important issues in administrative law. Confronting a challenge under the Endangered Species Act (ESA),...more
President Joe Biden signed into law the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA), colloquially referred to as the Debt Ceiling Bill, on June 3, 2023.[1] The legislation completes a bipartisan agreement to suspend the public...more
The Biden administration (the Administration) has set ambitious goals to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions to at least 50% below 2005 levels by 2030 and to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. To achieve these ends, the...more
5/15/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Electricity ,
Energy Reform ,
Energy Sector ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
NEPA ,
Net Zero ,
Transmission Lines
All Member States of the United Nations (UN) Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) reached an agreement on March 4, 2023, regarding an international treaty governing...more
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published guidance on January 9, 2023, regarding how to evaluate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and climate change under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which requires...more
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced on December 5, 2022, that the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will develop an updated Solar Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to help guide solar energy...more
On December 6-7, 2022, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) held its third offshore wind lease sale this year—and the first of its kind for floating wind—bringing in $757.1 million from five lease areas off the...more