New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced June 25 that she is directing New York Power Authority to add at least one gigawatt of new nuclear power generation by building a zero-emission nuclear power plant somewhere in upstate New...more
Welcome to our fifth issue of Currents 2025. We are covering a multitude of issues in this edition, but we want to pass along an announcement and an event notice first. Again, thank you for reading! Tapping Into Common...more
Even as the Trump administration moves to block state and local climate liability efforts, states and municipalities continue to advance lawsuits seeking to hold fossil fuel companies liable for harms associated with climate...more
On May 12, 2025, in a 5-2 decision, the Colorado Supreme Court held that the tort claims brought by local governments in Colorado against major fossil fuel companies concerning damages stemming from climate change could...more
As we have noted previously, a number of states have enacted legislation and/or brought claims against fossil fuel producers seeking payment for damages resulting from climate change. Legislative efforts include New York...more
A group of 24 Republican AGs, along with several trade associations, sued Vermont over the state’s Climate Superfund Act, which authorizes the state to levy billions of dollars in fines on fossil fuel companies for alleged...more
Recently, both the State of Hawaii and the State of Michigan had announced that they would be pursuing litigation against fossil fuel companies concerning alleged damages stemming from the companies' contribution to climate...more
On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14260, Protecting American Energy From State Overreach. Framed as part of the Administration’s broader strategy of unleashing American energy, the Order directs...more
President Trump’s energy-focused ambitions will generate work for regulators at all levels of the government....more
President Donald Trump on April 9, 2025, issued an executive order (EO) titled "Protecting American Energy from State Overreach." The EO aims at "unleashing American energy" by removing legal restrictions imposed by state...more
On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued a series of executive orders directing the federal government to analyze state-level climate policies targeting fossil fuel consumption and environmental regulations. This action...more
With the incoming Trump administration poised for an attack on federal environmental regulations, states are quickly emerging with actions on climate change. On December 26, 2024, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into...more
In the early hours of Monday, January 6, 2025, a severe winter storm fell on much of the MidAtlantic region and extended into New England. Forecasters predicted that this would only be the first in a series of significant...more
The United States is broadening the scope and diversity of its energy mix at a rate and to an extent not seen in a century, if ever. The changes underway provide both important opportunities and critical challenges for owners...more
The Cost of "Electrification" “Electrification” has become a ubiquitous term these days, although depending on who you ask, it might have different meanings. However defined, a critical component of electrification as a...more
Not a day seems to go by in recent weeks without multiple articles and media hits on controversies over gas stoves. Across the U.S., opponents of gas stoves have implemented a coordinated effort by government regulators,...more
The Washington Department of Commerce released its 2021 State Energy Strategy this month. The Energy Strategy is, first and foremost, a greenhouse gas reduction strategy. It begins with the declaration that “[a]voiding the...more
U.S. to Give Eight Nations Oil Waivers Under Iran Sanctions, Official Says - "The U.S. has agreed to let eight countries - including Japan, India and South Korea - keep buying Iranian oil after it reimposes sanctions on the...more
In early April 2017, the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) partnered with investor-owned electric distribution companies across the state to jointly issue a request for proposals (RFP) for renewable energy...more