Recent Articles

U.S. Army Corps Reissues 48 Existing and Two New Nationwide Permits

March 08, 2012 18:07

By Janice Schneider, Laura Godfrey, Buck Endemann, Josh Bledsoe, and Jennifer Roy On February 21, 2012, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) reissued 48 of its 49 existing nationwide permits (NWP) and also announced two new NWPs applicable to land- and water-based renewable energy...

Congress Replaces Forest Service Appeals with Pre-Decisional Objection Process

March 05, 2012 17:12

By Janice M. Schneider, Laura A. Godfrey and Taiga Takahashi The 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act (Appropriations Act), signed by President Obama on December 23, 2011, replaced the appeal process for most Forest Service actions with a pre-decisional objection process.  The...

Federal Court Clips Criminal Liability Under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act

February 09, 2012 21:57

By Buck Endemann and Taiga Takahashi A district court in North Dakota is the latest tribunal to reflect the growing reluctance among federal courts to criminalize otherwise lawful acts that result in the unintentional killing of birds protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act...

Court of Appeal in San Francisco Affirms Rule for CEQA Baseline Analysis, Allowing Marine Terminal Operations to Continue

January 24, 2012 19:39

By Taiga Takahashi On December 30, 2011, the Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District affirmed the Alameda County Superior Court’s rejection of petition for a writ of mandate based on California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and public trust doctrine claims. This case, Citizens for...

New Brookings Report Puts Spotlight on State Clean Energy Funds as Future Source for Clean Energy Finance and Economic Development

January 17, 2012 20:36

By Daniel Scripps A new report (pdf) from the Brookings Institution discusses the nearly two dozen  state-level clean energy funds (CEFs) that have invested in clean energy projects and concludes that CEFs hold out great promise for the continued design and implementation of “bottom...

California Supreme Court Decision Terminating Redevelopment Agencies Leaves Many Questions and Challenges

January 10, 2012 21:27

By Ursula Hyman and Daniel Van Fleet On December 29, 2011, in California Redevelopment Association v. Matosantos, the California Supreme Court (“Court”) upheld the constitutionality of AB 1X 26, a statute ending redevelopment agencies in the state.  In the same...

Farmers' Advocacy Group Enters Foray Against Solar Energy Siting

January 10, 2012 20:55

By Taiga Takahashi On October 31, 2011, the California Farm Bureau Federation petitioned the Superior Court in Fresno County for a peremptory writ of mandate and filed a complaint for injunctive relief to force the County to reverse its recent cancellation of a Williamson Act contract. The County...

Proposed Reforms to Bureau of Indian Affairs Surface Leasing Regulations Could Encourage Wind and Solar Resource Development on Indian Land

January 10, 2012 17:25

By Janice Schneider and Stacey VanBelleghem The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has proposed significant reforms to its current regulations for non-agricultural surface leases on Indian land.  76 Fed. Reg. 73784 (Nov. 29, 2011).  The proposed regulations include new provisions expressly...

Federal Government Seeks to Establish a Competitive Process for Leasing Public Lands for Solar and Wind Energy Development

January 05, 2012 23:05

By Janice Schneider and Joshua Marnitz Last week, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published in the Federal Register an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking outlining a competitive process for leasing public lands for solar and wind energy development.  76 Fed. Reg. 81906 (December 29,...

In Rejecting Rehearing of Demand Response Rule, Divided FERC Reaffirms Both Jurisdictional Reach and Market Efficiency Rationale

December 22, 2011 18:24

By Daniel Scripps Affirming its basis for issuing Order 745, "Demand Response Compensation in Organized Wholesale Energy Markets," the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on December 15, 2011 issued Order 745-A (PDF), denying petitions for rehearing of the original Order, and making only...