On-Demand Webinar | Recent Updates to Federal Environmental and Natural Resource Regulations
On-Demand Webinar | Linear Infrastructure Redux: Adapting Your Projects to Meet the New Regulatory Climate
On July 23, 2025, the White House issued an Executive Order titled “Accelerating Federal Permitting of Data Center Infrastructure.” Released alongside “America’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Plan,” the Order reflects a...more
The new Administration under President Trump is now over a month old, but there remains some uncertainty as to how the Administration will approach agricultural policy. The Administration’s first wave of environmental...more
The first month of President Donald Trump’s second term has seen a flurry of Executive Orders (EOs) impacting a swath of agencies, departments, and legislation. The environmental sector has been a particular focus of these...more
President Trump hit the ground running, issuing more executive orders, memoranda, and other actions on Inauguration Day than any previous president. Agencies are already working to implement those actions. Many of the actions...more
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
In Sackett v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered a massive blow to EPA's ability to regulate wetlands under the Clean Water Act ("CWA"). Addressing the "nagging question" about the reaches of the CWA, Justice Alito, joined...more
Right out of the box, the Biden Administration took a decisive stance on the importance of climate costs in agency decision making, returning to Obama-era metrics and values. On his first day in office, President Biden issued...more
JANUARY 2020 - FEDERAL APPELLATE COURTS - U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit - El Paso County, Texas, et al. v. Donald J. Trump, et al. On January 8, 2020, a divided panel of the court quickly granted a...more
Each new presidential administration brings with it its own set of policy goals and priorities. While the text of the environmental laws does not change without an act of Congress, agencies within the executive branch have a...more
Overview of the current energy mix, and the place in the market of different energy sources - Due in large part to the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. total energy consumption in 2020 is on pace to decline for a second straight...more
President-elect Biden will assume office in January, 2021, with a divided nation, the global coronavirus pandemic, and a domestic energy market in a distressed state. The new administration will need to oversee the management...more
Our latest summary of some recent developments in the courts and the federal agencies includes a unique case involving salt marshes adjacent to San Francisco Bay....more
The United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit (“Court”), in a June 5th opinion addressed a challenge to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s approval of an oil pipeline response plan. See National...more
Last week, Federal District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill granted a preliminary injunction to various NGOs, barring the Bureau of Land Management from implementing amendments BLM had made in 2019 to protection plans for the...more
The Center for Biological Diversity (“CBD”) sent a July 25th 60-day Notice of Intent to Sue (“Notice”) to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) alleging a violation of the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). ...more
Federal environmental requirements and regulations have been relaxed (or are proposed to be relaxed) since President Trump was elected, but those environmental regulatory changes have not yet realized benefits for renewable...more
This is the second issue of WilmerHale's 10-in-10 Infrastructure Series. In this series, our attorneys share insights on current and emerging issues affecting infrastructure project developers in the United States....more
In his January 30, 2018 State of the Union address, the President declared that he had eliminated more regulations in his first year than any other administration’s first year. Part of that claim may arise out of a...more
The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Office of Management and Budget(Administration) has posted the Fall 2017 Agency Statements of Regulatory Priorities, and what follows is a selection of future environmental...more
The California Department of Water Resources (“DWR”) filed a validation action on July 21, 2017, in the Sacramento County Superior Court, seeking to confirm the validity of bonds it has authorized to finance the planning and...more
President Donald Trump's Executive Order (EO) entitled "Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth" is a broad directive accomplishing a number of the Trump Administration's energy-related priorities....more
TSCA/FIFRA/NTP - EPA Proposes Regulation Of TCE Use In Vapor Degreasing Under TSCA Section 6(a): On January 19, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed rule under Section 6(a) of the...more
What will a Trump Presidency mean for environmental law? I’m not sure my crystal ball if better than anyone else’s, but here are a few quick thoughts...more
“Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” Many important environmental and administrative law decisions were reported by the federal and state courts over the past six months. The courts are dealing with very...more
The state and federal appellate courts have issued a surprising number of significant rulings in a variety of environmental and administrative law controversies in late July and early August: - On August 8, the U.S....more