Obama’s SOTU speech on climate change
Last night, President Obama devoted a chunk of his state of the union speech to climate change and energy issues. He focused on the economic benefits of making our society more energy efficient and bringing more renewable power on-line, particularly the job-creation potential. Surprisingly, he didn't mention the national security benefits of reducing our dependence on foreign oil, which seems like a bipartisan political winner. As with his health care strategy, he did...
CONTINUE READINGPlastic, plastic everywhere . . . .
Several months ago, I noted a controversy about the chemical bisphenol-A and its former ubiquity in water bottles. Up until very recently, despite reports by the Environmental Working Group and others that suggested significant health risks from BPA, our federal government showed no inclination to regulate the use of the chemical in consumer products. The FDA has taken a step toward changing its mind now. A new agency report, widely covered in national media, states t...
CONTINUE READINGThe Corporate Side of Climate Change
I was surprised a few years ago when one of the speakers at a conference on climate change turned out to be a lead partner at a Wall Street law firm who counseled corporations about disclosure of climate risks. He may have been just a few years ahead of the curve. According to E&E News, the SEC has issued a new ruling on corporate disclosure of risks relating to climate change: Publicly traded companies must consider the physical impacts of climate change -- as we...
CONTINUE READING200,000 Hits on Legal Planet
When we started, we were hoping for 50,000 hits in our first year of operation, and we weren't at all confident that we could come close to that. Instead, we have now topped 200,000. That's exactly fifty thousand times as many viewings as the average law review article. Actually, I just made that up, but the fact is that law review articles have a small readership. Strangely enough, most people aren't attracted by fifty or sixty pages of technical prose accompanie...
CONTINUE READINGPriming the Political Pump for Climate Legislation
Dan, Rick, and Jonathan have all discussed the implications of the political events of the last week for climate change policy. Certainly, it seems clear that both from a vote-counting perspective and from a political momentum perspective, the special election last week made passage of a climate change bill through the Senate generally harder. And observers more knowledgeable than me have concluded that the Citizens United case will result in more corporate influence...
CONTINUE READINGMurkowski May Have Another Tactic to Defeat Climate Change Legislation
As Holly previously described, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has introduced a resolution to express disapproval over the EPA's greenhouse gas endangerment finding. Murkowski is also considering a different tactic to wreak havoc with efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. She may introduce an amendment to the Senate bill to raise the debt ceiling. The amendment would force an up or down vote on the Boxer-Kerry cap and trade legislation, a strategy ...
CONTINUE READINGMurkowski seeks to block EPA GHG regulation
Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski has introduced a resolution under the Congressional Review Act to disapprove EPA's Clean Air Act endangerment finding for greenhouse gases, which in turn would remove the basis for Clean Air Act regulation. It's not going to pass or be signed by the President, of course, but the resolution is designed to put supporters of climate change legislation on the defensive. The Democrats can't simply bury this resolution, because the CRA allows 30 s...
CONTINUE READINGMassachusetts’ Special Election & the Prognosis for U.S. Climate Change Legislation
Colleague Jonathan Zasloff recently opined on this site that Scott Brown's election to the open U.S. Senate seat from Massachusetts could actually be good news when it comes to prospects for passage of federal climate change legislation. Let me file a congenial dissent to Jonathan's prediction, though one that--like his--contains some seeds of optimism. I adhere to the much more conventional view that Tuesday's special election results from the Bay State make it even le...
CONTINUE READINGInterior IG faults Arizona in death of Macho B
Nearly a year ago, Arizona game officials captured, radio-collared, and released Macho B, an endangered jaguar. Shortly thereafter, he was recaptured, and euthanized. The events surrounding Macho B's capture and death remain under criminal investigation by federal authorities. This week, the Department of Interior's Inspector General weighed in, issuing this report of the separate investigation it conducted at the request of Representatives Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Nic...
CONTINUE READINGWhy Scott Brown’s Victory Helps Climate Legislation
Really. The debacle in Massachusetts may have turned the Democrats into a bunch of sniveling, spineless wimps -- or simply reaffirm their identity as such -- but it might actually help climate change legislation. How? A one-word answer: reconciliation. A budget reconciliation bill cannot be filibustered: according to the Budget Act of 1974, the Senate is limited to 20 hours of debate on it. It does not get rid of the filibuster because you cannot put everything i...
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