Last month, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court reiterated its general view of the Environmental Rights Amendment, Article I, Section 27, of the Pennsylvania Constitution. That court seems to believe that executive
Continue Reading Another ERA Decision and Some Cautions About Making Government Work
On Oct. 6, 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy (Ministerie van Economische
Continue Reading U.S. and Dutch Governments Announce Hydrogen Collaboration
Earlier this year New York state, conceding that its previously enacted siting law had not been effective in siting large-scale renewable energy projects, enacted the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and
Continue Reading Pleasing All the People Some of the Time: New York Simultaneously Proposes Regulations Implementing Its New Siting Law and Community Benefit Program for Renewable Projects
Last month, I wrote about the “Environmental Justice for All Act,” a bill that proposes a finding that vulnerable populations are disproportionately burdened by environmental hazards. New Jersey is
Continue Reading New Jersey’s Environmental Justice Legislation: The Focus on Major Source Permit Applications Might Impact Property Values
Confusion permeates the public arena as to what the U.S. Supreme Court recently did – and didn’t do – by ruling in favor of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, a federally
On July 30, Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) unveiled the “The Environmental Justice for All Act.”
The bill proposes a finding that
Continue Reading ‘Environmental Justice for All Act’ Introduced in U.S. Senate
On July 15, 2020, President Trump’s administration finalized a significant overhaul of the regulations governing the administration of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). In January 2020, when the regulatory overhaul was announced, we observed that rolling back 50 years of precedent in an administrative action could trigger judicial challenges to the rule and result in greater regulatory uncertainty for federal projects. The final rule, while making some relatively minor modifications, hews closely to its original terms, and does little to satisfy potential challengers.
Continue Reading A Tale of Two Environmental Policies: President Trump Announces NEPA Reform, as Former Vice President Biden Vows to Roll Back Reforms If Elected
The European Parliament has adopted (as of 18 June 2020) new legislation on sustainable investments.
The new law was published in the Official Journal of the European Union last
Continue Reading European Parliament Adopts Criteria for Sustainable Investments
With New York Governor Andrew Cuomo pronouncing the state’s process for siting renewable energy projects broken, the New York State legislature late yesterday passed sweeping reforms to the siting of
Continue Reading New York State Legislature Passes Renewable Energy Siting Law In Step Toward Meeting Ambitious Renewable Energy Mandates
On Feb. 19, 2020, the IRS released Notice 2020-12 and Revenue Procedure 2020-12 (together, the “Carbon Guidance”) which provide highly anticipated clarity on the Internal Revenue Code Section 45Q credit