Hot Take on the Endangerment Repeal
It's a tweaked version of arguments that the Supreme Court rejected in 2007.
The other shoe has dropped with the announcement of the final rule repealing EPA’s 2009 finding that greenhouse gases endanger human health and welfare. The Trump Administration has the nasty habit of announcing new regulations before posting them. That means that for the moment we are limited to the EPA press release. Although I’ll post again when more details are available, the main outlines of EPA’s rationale are already clear. In this post, I’ll analyze so...
CONTINUE READINGFake species?
Looking at the data on ESA listed species to see if enviro groups strategically identify species to block development.
This tweet, arguing that it’s “an open secret at this point that environmental activists try to invent fake ‘endangered’ species to block infrastructure projects they don’t like” got a lot of traction. But is it correct? It turns out that a paper I did (with Berry Brosi) about 15 years ago provides some insights into the claim. In our paper, we drew on data that the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ...
CONTINUE READINGThe Accelerating Decline of U.S. Public Health Policy
Just when we get over our shock over one development, another comes along.
It’s hard to believe how quickly a science-driven approach to protecting health has been replaced by ideology and quackery. Lack of expertise is now seen as a plus in making decisions, and the Administration is actively seeking to suppress information about problems that it would rather not address. I posted a month ago about the current evidence-free approach to health policy, Things have only gotten worse since then. It's been one bad thing after another. ITE...
CONTINUE READINGThe Winners and Losers of Superbowl LX
The Seattle Seahawks came out on top at Sunday’s big game, but consumers and the environment joined the New England Patriots in the “losers” column.
Like millions of others around the world, I spent Sunday eating fried foods, drinking sugary beverages, and enjoying the company of my friends while watching the opposite of a nail-biter of a game. As a fan of the Seattle Seahawks and a hater of the New England Patriots, I’ll admit that I was delighted with the outcome of the big game. Even when your team isn’t playing, there is a lot to love about Superbowl Sunday, especially in a time where collective joy c...
CONTINUE READINGTrump Will Kill Climate Regulations, But How Exactly?
The Drain is a weekly roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.
The Environmental Protection Agency will officially revoke what’s known as the endangerment finding tomorrow and in so doing try to erase the basis for virtually all that agency’s regulations cutting greenhouse gases. It’s not really a surprise — we’ve been waiting for this announcement for a year. But seeing the agency’s precise justification will help answer an important question: Does the administration rely on science or legal reasoning? My UCLA Em...
CONTINUE READINGA Science-Policy Dialogue on SRM for Latin America
Key takeaways from the UCLA Emmett Institute's convening on Solar Radiation Modification (SRM) in Santiago, Chile.
Though interventions like solar radiation modification (SRM) are increasingly breaking into mainstream conversations of climate change, the charged nature of this topic and political extremes that have characterized discussion around it make it difficult for policymakers and decision-makers to find neutral spaces to learn about existing research, ask questions, and brainstorm policy ideas with colleagues and trusted experts. Creating that neutral sp...
CONTINUE READINGState Blacklists of Companies with Sustainability Policies Take a Constitutional Hit
A federal district court just struck down a Texas law blacklisting companies that oppose fossil fuels.
Four or five years ago, a half-dozen states passed laws that blacklist companies opposing fossil fuels. Texas was the most prominent of those states. These laws have pressured companies, especially big financial companies, to invest in fossil fuels. A federal district judge has struck down the Texas law as a violation of due process and the First Amendment. The judge was right. Because the judge’s ruling was based on the sweeping scope of the law, it’s important t...
CONTINUE READINGTaking Care That the Law Be Fitfully Executed
Carrying out the law is the core duty of the President. And it’s being openly violated.
The parameters of presidential power have been debated since soon after George Washington took office. But the Constitution makes at least one thing crystal clear: the President must “take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” This is a task to which the current incumbent, it can be safely said, has not applied himself. The “take care” clause is reinforced by the very terminology used to describe the President’s authority, the clause vesting the “e...
CONTINUE READINGIs Antitrust Unconstitutional?
It violates the "Major Questions Doctrine" -- which reveals the doctrine's bankruptcy
Last week, I argued that the Unitary Executive Theory does not really exist: it is simply a way for the Supremes to impose their policy preferences, to be discarded if inconvenient. In this week’s episode, we can look at the “Major Questions Doctrine,” which purportedly holds that agencies must point to "clear congressional authorization" for the power asserted in "extraordinary cases". It was first explicitly enunciated in West Virginia v EPA, where the Court d...
CONTINUE READINGTrump Tried to Kill Renewables. He Failed.
Despite assaults by Trump and his Congress, renewables are still growing.
Trump has done everything within his power to bless the US with more air pollution and carbon emissions from fossil fuels. Congress did its part, rolling back billions in spending and set accelerated phaseouts for tax credits. Yet renewable energy hasn’t died. It hasn’t even slowed down all that much. Here are the numbers. Solar alone accounted for almost three-fourths of new generation capacity in Trump’s first ten months, and wind added another 13%, for 87% to...
CONTINUE READINGJoin Our Mailing List
Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.
