Tag Archives: EPA

COVID-19: US Developments – Implementation and Oversight of CARES Act – June 10, 2020

The United States has experienced a sharp increase in the number of new reported cases of coronavirus over the past week, but Beltway media coverage and the policy debate in Washington this week are largely centered on the potential for action in both chambers of the US Congress on police reform legislation. Republicans, emboldened by … Continue Reading

Return of Senate’s Comprehensive Energy Bill to Move Prior to July 4th Recess; Administration Reviews Clean Power Plan

Legislative Activity Revival of the Comprehensive Energy Bill Last week, by unanimous consent, the House Energy and Commerce Committee advanced 11 bills governing energy infrastructure and efficiency. The bills address a range of issues including:  skill preparation for energy-related jobs; improvement to hydroelectric licensing; retrofits for schools; increasing energy and water efficiency for federal facilities … Continue Reading

Department of Energy To Cut Energy Development Regulations; EPA Stays Landfill Rules; Senate To Consider Nominations for DOE, EPA, DOI and Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Regulatory Activity Department of Energy Cutting Energy Development Regulations This follows our earlier report highlighting the Trump Administration’s recent memo with specifics as to how the President expects agencies to carry out his previously issued energy Executive Order (EO) 13783 – “Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth”. EO 13783 directs agencies to identify regulations that would … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General May 22 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these updates, … Continue Reading

Senate Considers Changing NAAQs; House Examines Army Corps and US Forest Service Budgets; State Department Seeks Global Scientists

Legislative Branch Activity This week on Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety, will hold a hearing titled “Making Implementation of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for Ground-Level Ozone Attainable: Legislative Hearing on S.263 and S.452.” The NAAQs have been highly controversial since their … Continue Reading

President Trump Issues New Guidance Clarifying Energy Executive Order; EPA Moving on WOTUS and RFS

Executive Branch Activity New Guidance Clarifying Energy Executive Order Last week, just four days before federal agencies’ initial plans were due to OMB, the White House issued a memo updating with more specifics as to how President Trump expects agencies to carry out his previously issued energy executive order (Executive Order 13783, “Promoting Energy Independence and … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General May 1 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading

Executive Action for Outer Continental Shelf; House to Consider Antiquities Act; Repeal of More Water Regulations?

Executive Branch Activity Next OCS Developments Last Friday, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) directing the Department of the Interior to review and potentially rewrite the Obama Administration’s Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Final Program for the years 2017 to 2022 to include provisions for oil and gas development in the Arctic and … Continue Reading

EPA Plans Rewrite of WOTUS; House Contemplates Nuclear Waste Policy

Regulatory Activity WOTUS Last week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) indicated its plans to solicit comments by June 19 as to how the agency should rewrite the “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule following President Trump’s February 28 executive order (EO) directing the agency to revise the contentious Obama Administration rule. Following the EO, EPA … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General April 3 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General March 20 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading

Trump Releases FY 2018 Budget Blueprint and Sends FY 2017 Military and Border Supplemental to Congress

Executive Branch Activity Trump Releases FY 2018 Budget Blueprint Last week, President Donald Trump released his FY 2018 “skinny budget,” intended to serve as the blueprint for his full budget request expected in May. As anticipated, the $1.1 trillion budget request adheres to the topline discretionary spending cap of $1.1 trillion mandated by the Budget … Continue Reading

President Trump Requests 2018 Budgets Slashed for EPA, Energy, Interior and Water; Upcoming Executive Orders for Oil and Gas

Executive Branch Activity  EPA, DOE, Interior, and Water 2018 Budgets Cut in President Trump’s Request to Congress EPA:  President Donald Trump’s FY 2018 budget request, which was released last week, included a significant 31.4 percent decrease for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), from the current funding level of $8.2 billion to $5.7 billion. This represents the … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General March 13 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading

Resolution Repealing BLM’s Planning 2.0 Rule Sent to the President; Vote on Rescinding Methane Rule Put on Hold

Legislative Activity Resolution Repealing BLM’s Planning 2.0 Rule Sent to the President Last week, the Senate passed H. J. Res 44, using the Congressional Review Act (CRA), to rescind the Bureau of Land Management’s Resource Management Planning rule, known as the BLM Planning 2.0 Rule, by a vote of 51-48. The House passed the resolution … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General March 6 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading

WOTUS Changes on Horizon; House Hearing on Water Infrastructure; Senate Hearing on Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act

Executive Action Waters of the US On Tuesday, February 28, President Donald Trump signed an executive order (EO) directing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to revise or rescind the Obama Administration’s controversial “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule which defines the scope of the federal government’s regulatory … Continue Reading

State Attorneys General February 20 Update

Squire Patton Boggs’ State Attorneys General Practice Group is comprised of lawyers who have served at senior levels in state AG offices around the country and whose practices focus, to one degree or another, on representing clients before these increasingly assertive and powerful, yet often overlooked, government agencies, as explained in detail here. In these … Continue Reading

Possible Senate Vote on Pruitt for EPA; Senate To Vote On Rescinding Methane Flaring Rule

Legislative Activity Senate May Move on Nominees In addition to taking up the methane flaring measure under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), the Senate could potentially vote on the nomination of Oklahoma Attorney General, Scott Pruitt, to serve as EPA Administrator. With the Senate calendar being quite full, the Senate might note vote this week on the nominations … Continue Reading

Zinke, Perry, Pruitt Proceed Out of Committee; Congress Continues to Use CRA to Invalidate Environmental Rules

Legislative Activity Nomination Proceedings The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has advanced the nominations of Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) to be Secretary of Interior and Governor Rick Perry to be Secretary of Energy. Notwithstanding the boycott by the Democratic members of the committee, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee advanced the nomination of … Continue Reading

Possible Secretary Confirmation Hearing for Interior; Potential Energy Legislation in the 115th; DOE Releases its QER

Legislative Activity Cabinet Secretary Selections and Confirmation Hearings (Energy, Interior and EPA) President-Elect Trump has selected former Republican Texas Governor Rick Perry as his nominee to lead the Department of Energy; current Representative Ryan Zinke (R-MT) for Secretary of the Department of Interior; and Oklahoma Attorney General, Scott Pruitt, to be Administrator of the Environmental Protection … Continue Reading
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