Changes in presidential Administration often mean changes in policy priorities and budgeting, but a Maryland federal district court recently held that the executive branch’s ability to pivot on policy has limits....more
On April 22, the Trump Administration issued an Executive Order (EO) directing the US Department of Justice (DOJ) to begin to unwind “disparate impact” regulations that were established under federal civil rights laws. In the...more
The first day of any presidential administration is filled with both ceremony and bureaucracy. The first day of the second Trump Administration was no different....more
1/23/2025
/ Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) ,
NEPA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
Water
In the environmental space, 2024 has been a memorable year with regulatory efforts and court decisions touching on every aspect of environmental and energy regulation, capped out by a closely divided election....more
12/24/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Chevron v NRDC ,
Citizen Suits ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Coal Industry ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
PFAS ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
TransUnion LLC v Ramirez
The Biden Administration has put environmental justice (EJ) issues at the forefront of its policy agenda for nearly four years. More comprehensive guidance on how policymakers should evaluate “cumulative impacts” has been a...more
Addressing so-called “environmental justice” (EJ) issues was a major focus for the Biden Administration from the time it took office. But, as we prepare for a new administration, the Biden Administration’s primacy in...more
While environmental justice (EJ) concerns continued to drive policymaking in early 2024, EJ efforts increasingly faced headwinds coming from various and sometimes unexpected directions. Below, we will summarize recent...more
4/17/2024
/ City of Chicago ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Human Rights ,
Louisiana ,
NGOs ,
Petrochemicals ,
Plastics ,
Settlement ,
State Implementation Plans (SIPs)
The Biden Administration’s embrace of a “whole of government” approach to address environmental justice (EJ) issues occasioned litigation across the country.
One of the hottest series of disputes has been the tag-team...more
The Biden Administration’s efforts to address environmental justice (EJ) concerns continue. This month, US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced modifications to EPA’s Equity Action Plan....more
As we move into 2024, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concepts continue to feature prominently in policy debates. While ESG still drives policy, the last year has seen “ESG” factors recast from being perceived as...more
Environmental justice (EJ) issues continue to feature prominently in national headlines in 2024. Below, we unpack two Louisiana EJ-focused court decisions and outline seven takeaways for the regulated community....more
State and local governments have weighed in at increasing frequency in past years. While some environmental issues are global in scope, local governments are progressively engaged on issues affecting climate, waste disposal,...more
The regulated community faces a complex and evolving landscape. As we head into 2024, our team of energy, environmental, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) attorneys provide insights and guidance on how to...more
12/14/2023
/ CERCLA ,
Chevron Deference ,
Divestment ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Hazardous Substances ,
NAAQS ,
Petrochemicals ,
PFAS ,
Plastics ,
Public Disclosure ,
Recycling ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Safe Drinking Water Act ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Environmental and energy issues were in the headlines for much of 2023. We had several major US Supreme Court cases, Canadian wildfires that produced haze in many American cities throughout the summer, and continued attention...more
12/7/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Energy ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Loan Forgiveness ,
PFAS ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sackett v EPA ,
State Constitutions ,
Student Loans
A first-of-its-kind environmental justice (EJ) lawsuit filed by a group of Louisiana churches and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) was dismissed this week.
The court’s decision finding the plaintiffs’ claims to be...more
Costs to clean up environmentally impacted real estate have continued to increase. A variety of factors have caused this trend including: listing of new contaminants, enhanced focus on contamination pathways like vapor...more
The Comprehensive Environmental Justice Enforcement Strategy Annual Report builds on the DOJ’s creation of its Office of Environmental Justice within the DOJ’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), which has...more
Sometimes where to begin is the hardest part. The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recently released Toolkit is intended to help local and state governments start their environmental justice (EJ) journey through...more
While increased enforcement resulting from increased federal focus on environmental justice (EJ) issues poses risk to many businesses, how (and perhaps whether) the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assesses and...more
Louisiana has been at the center of the Biden Administration’s prioritization of environmental justice (EJ) issues.
In United States v. Denka Performance Elastomer, the Eastern District of Louisiana granted a motion by the...more
9/11/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Biden Administration ,
Clean Air Act ,
Emergency Powers ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Louisiana ,
NESHAP ,
OMB ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Public Health ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Statute of Limitations
More so than any other issue, environmental justice (EJ) remains a central pillar of the Biden Administration’s regulatory agenda. Below, we’ll answer three EJ-related questions that the regulated community may struggle with...more
8/25/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Corporate Governance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sustainability
The energy transition and increased public focus on environmental issues have strained the existing regulatory regime including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA directs agencies to conduct environmental...more
In the United States, environmental and public health measures often correlate to variables like education, income, and a community’s racial makeup. In the five decades since Congress began to create comprehensive...more
7/7/2023
/ Affirmative Defenses ,
CERCLA ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Equal Protection ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VI ,
Title VII
Addressing environmental justice (EJ) issues has been a primary concern for the Biden Administration. Recent developments — one in Chicago and one in Louisiana — show different ways local and state regulators have reacted to...more
If you blink, there’s a good chance that you will miss a major development in the environmental justice (EJ) space.
Given that Earth Day occurred last week, it’s no surprise we have two major developments to report: ...more