The Arguments We Did and Didn’t Hear in Suncor v. Boulder
Oral arguments in the climate case before the Supreme Court gave hints to possible outcomes. But one of Boulder's strong answers to the "tort suits are regulation" objection went unmade.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments today in Suncor Energy v. County Commissioners of Boulder County. At issue is whether the city and county of Boulder can move forward with its state court case against defendants Exxon Mobil Corporation and Suncor Energy for allegedly deceiving the public about their products' role in climate change. Some three dozen local governments and states throughout the United States have filed similar lawsuits in state court against fossil f...
CONTINUE READINGDeregulatory Theater of the Absurd
The new CAFE standards are a master class in pretending you’re implementing a law while totally sabotaging it.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) recently issued CAFE standards — fuel efficiency standards for new cars. Rolling back more rigorous standards from Biden, DOT applied considerable ingenuity to ensure that fuel efficiency will stagnate for the foreseeable future. Like an Escher drawing, you have to step back from all the intricate details to appreciate just how weird the overall design is. What’s happening on each staircase in the drawing seems believabl...
CONTINUE READINGPermitting Reform Bill: NEPA Remedies
Efforts to tailor remedies for NEPA violations address an important issue, but may have misfired
To me the most important change in environmental law from the permitting reform bill is the effort to restrict remedies for NEPA violations. I’ve written before about why I think this is important work to do, and why it is important to do it well. And there are good components to the proposal on the table (not just because it aligns some with an earlier suggestion of mine). But after spending some time considering the provision, I’m increasingly concerned it i...
CONTINUE READINGThe Endhó Dam: One of the World’s Least Known Sacrifice Zones
It's well past time to end sacrifice zones, including the area that has been treated as "Mexico's toilet bowl" for decades.
Last week, about halfway down the New York Times’ Monday morning newsletter, there was a video titled “Living Next to Mexico’s Toxic Reservoir.” I watched it, appalled not only by the dangerous conditions described in the video and accompanying article, but also by the fact that I had never heard of this enormous environmental justice disaster. I worried that if I—someone who inevitably spends some part of everyday thinking about environmental injustices—...
CONTINUE READINGThree Cheers for Two Clean Energy Victories for California
Gov. Newsom signed SB 1359 and AB 2313, two bills that the UCLA Emmett Institute had identified as clear winners for ratepayers.
After a suspenseful few weeks, we’re excited to see that yesterday, Governor Newsom signed into law two key bills that will help reduce costly gas bills and help households transition to a cleaner energy future: SB 1359 and AB 2313. We’ve written about both of these bills before, in multiple reports and blog posts. It’s important to celebrate these kinds of wins and to highlight how policy analysis can inform advocacy and coalition-building to make law in this spac...
CONTINUE READINGA quick overview of the Senate permitting reform bill
Senate bill has major changes for NEPA, some changes for Clean Water Act
The bipartisan permitting reform bill – at least the Senate version – is out. You can see it here. My initial take on the bill is below, and I hope to do some more detailed examination of specific provisions soon. My focus will be on the environmental law side, not the transmission side, since that is the part I know better. (For a very helpful overview of the entire bill, see this summary from Heatmap, though I think there are some errors, as I note below). ...
CONTINUE READINGFrom Desert to Oasis?
Xi Jinping's Tree-Planting Toast and the Future of U.S.-China Environmental Cooperation
Last week, China’s President Xi Jinping shocked retired American teacher Ron Sakolsky by mentioning him in a toast at a White House state dinner as a “shining example of friendly exchanges” between Chinese and American people. Sakolsky found himself in unexpected company: Xi’s brief history of U.S.-China friendship included George Washington’s purchase of Chinese porcelain; the U.S.’ World War II “Hump” airlift over the Himalayas, Ping-Pong diplomacy and ...
CONTINUE READINGGet Out the (Green) Vote
The Drain is a roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.
Paying people for their vote in the midterms was one of those bizarre ideas that Trump floated and even some Republicans dismissed. But there is actually an incentivized Get Out the Vote effort happening right now that makes more sense (and is legal). Patagonia, a longtime corporate supporter of environmental activism, is offering customers a financial incentive if they encourage friends and family to make a plan to vote in the midterm elections. Not to vote for a...
CONTINUE READINGWho Will Control the Next Congress?
The election could be very close -- or things could break hard for one party.
As we get closer to the election, there are still undoubtedly surprises ahead. Still, we can get a sense of where things are heading based on current information. Who controls Congress will impact a lot of issues, including environment and energy. Even with a President as wilful as Trump, Congress has significant levers to pull. Where do things stand today? Since I’m not a political expert, I’ll rely on two political websites, Cook and Sabato, for guidance. Th...
CONTINUE READINGGorsuch is (Partly) Right
Justice Gorsuch is wrong about the cure, but delegation has gotten out of hand.
Justice Gorsuch has made it a personal crusade to revive the nondelegation doctrine, in part because of concerns about the rising tide of presidential power. As I'll explain below, the nondelegation doctrine tries to limit the ability of Congress to delegate authority to the executive branch. Strengthening the doctrine is an unworkable solution, but Gorsuch is right that Congress has put far too much trust in the good faith and sound judgment of the President and ...
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