Proof in Trial: Appellate Edition: Stand Up for California et al. v. U.S. Department of the Interior et al.
On April 9, 2025, President Trump announced a slew of executive actions seeking to bolster the coal industry. One of the three executive orders is directly targeted at procedures to increase coal mining and production, which...more
Good afternoon! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
On Friday, I posted about a decision invalidating BLM Resource Manage Plans for failure to comply with NEPA. My caption was “NEPA Is Still Going to Pose an Obstacle to Leasing Public Lands for Fossil Fuel Extraction.”...more
In a first, U.S. declares shortage on Colorado River, forcing water cuts - The New York Times – August 16 - With climate change and long-term drought continuing to take a toll on the Colorado River, the federal Bureau of...more
In 2016, DOI Secretarial Order 3338 imposed a moratorium on new coal leases on federal land until BLM prepared a programmatic environmental impact statement intended to address, among other issues, the impact of coal leasing...more
The Utah coal industry has benefited from recent reforms in federal coal leasing, permitting and streamlining of environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”). During the previous administration,...more
On June 19, 2018, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia rejected a challenge by environmental groups and held that the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) has no legal obligation to update its...more
Department of Interior Rescinds OSM Enforcement Policies - On October 12, 2017, the Department of the Interior ("DOI") withdrew two prior Office of Surface Mining ("OSM") policies affecting mining operations. DOI rescinded...more
Welcome to Spilman Thomas & Battle's weekly energy news e-blast - Currents. The purpose of this communication is to provide a synopsis of the top news stories for the week, but with a twist. We recognize that you may already...more
President Donald Trump’s recently signed Executive Order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth (the Order) includes significant revisions to the regulatory landscape both (1) directly in the case of oil and...more
As we reported, the House and Senate have passed a joint resolution under the Congressional Review Act disapproving the SEC Resource Extraction Rule and that President Trump was expected to sign the legislation that...more
By almost every account, the Trump Administration is likely to alter substantially the environmental regulatory landscape. Actions have already been taken to delay the implementation of regulations as well as initiating...more
On January 11, 2017, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) within the Department of the Interior released a scoping report analyzing a wide range of proposed reforms to the federal coal leasing program, administered by the BLM....more
President-Elect Donald Trump announced this week three new cabinet nominees who will certainly influence U.S. energy policy at home and abroad. This alert is intended to update clients on the President-Elect's nominees and...more
Environmental and Policy Focus - South Coast AQMD plan would fight smog mainly through incentives, not rules - Los Angeles Times - Jun 30 - The South Coast Air Quality Management District's draft Air Quality...more
The United States Department of Interior’s (DOI) Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement has proposed new regulations requiring coal mining companies to protect and restore streams impacted by nearby mining...more
On January 6, 2015, the Department of the Interior’s Office of Natural Resources Revenue (“ONRR”) issued a proposed regulation that would substantially modify existing regulations in 30 C.F.R. Part 1206 for the valuation for...more