federalism
New York’s Big Move
The Empire State has jumped into the first tier of state climate action.
Last week, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a breakthrough climate change law, the “New York State Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.” What every state does to address climate change is worthwhile, of course, but New York is particularly significant in terms of the national picture. It’s the nation’s third-most populous state and also …
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CONTINUE READINGSupreme Court Takes a Knick Out of Regulatory Takings Law
Justices Curb Ripeness Rule; Open Federal Courts to Takings Litigation
In the final, major environmental law decision of its current Term, the U.S. Supreme Court handed property rights advocates a major victory while repudiating an important regulatory takings precedent the Court had itself fashioned and announced 34 years ago. The case is Knick v. Township of Scott. By a narrow 5-4 vote that split …
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CONTINUE READINGWhy is Trump Getting the Cold Shoulder from the Car Companies?
The answer: His rollback promises them little profit and much uncertainty.
Usually, you’d expect a regulated industry to applaud an effort to lighten its regulatory burdens. So you would think that the car industry would support Trump’s effort to roll back fuel efficiency standards for new vehicles and take away California’s authority to set its own vehicle standards. But that effort is being met by silence …
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CONTINUE READINGOne State, Two States, Red States, Blue States: Federalism Hypocrisy in Trump’s EPA
Regulatory approaches for vehicles versus power plants show the Trump White House’s true motivation – and it’s not states’ rights.
As my colleague Cara Horowitz has already blogged, the Trump EPA is preparing to announce a Clean Power Plan replacement today, rolling back Obama-era efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants. The plan is expected to largely shift the regulatory burden to states, essentially leaving it up to them to decide whether …
CONTINUE READINGTrump’s Contradictory Policies
Trump’s policies clash with each other remarkably often.
A certain amount of policy inconsistency is inevitable in any Administration. But the Trump Administration seems to be breaking all records. The Administration does have strong impulses. The trouble is that its goals keep colliding. Here are some examples. Favoring gas at the expense of coal. . . And vice versa. Trump wants to promote …
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CONTINUE READINGSafeguarding Climate Policies
There are several strategies for insulating climate policy from leaders like Trump.
Trump’s election was a surprise. What should not be a surprise is the inevitability of political setbacks for climate policy. We saw that in the U.S. with the shift from Clinton to Bush and then from Obama to Trump. We also saw that in Australia where it meant the repeal of a promising emissions trading …
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CONTINUE READINGWhat Does Sports Gambling Have To Do With Environmental Law?
A Lot, Potentially, Following the Supreme Court’s Murphy v. NCAA Decision
Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a major decision invalidating a federal statute that had prohibited states from allowing betting on competitive sporting events. Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, is one of those relatively rare Supreme Court decisions that directly affects a substantial portion of the American public. So it’s no great surprise that …
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CONTINUE READINGThe 2018 Elections: Governors
These nine races will shape the future of U.S. climate policy.
In the Trump era, states have become crucial to any hope of moving climate policy forward. That makes gubernatorial elections more crucial than ever. With that in mind, I’ve taken a look at crucial governors’ races to check out the potential effect on climate policy. My selection of states is based on lists of key …
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CONTINUE READINGNative American Treaties, Declining Salmon Populations, Broken Promises & Environmental Justice
Pending Washington v. U.S. Supreme Court Decision Offers Hope & Vindication for Tribes, Coastal Fisheries
Truth be told, the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2017-18 Term has been an unsually quiet one for environmental and natural resources law. Until now. This week the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a last-minute addition to the Court’s current docket. Washington v. United States, No. 17-269, a case the justices only accepted for review in January, …
CONTINUE READINGFifty States, Fifty Energy Policies
New report provides a snapshot of renewable energy growth across the country.
The federal government gets all the headlines, but state governments control much of energy policy. They control local utilities and set policies on renewable energy. But because so many jurisdictions are involved, it’s hard to get an overall picture of what’s really happening. I’ve been trying to get at least a rough sense of what’s …
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