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In his first two days in office, newly inaugurated President Donald J. Trump signed a flurry of Executive Orders, including several aimed at supporting the traditional energy industry.
V&E Environmental Update
On February 3, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granted a partial motion to dismiss filed by the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”), dismissing the claims that SB 253 (the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act) and SB 261 (the Climate-related Financial Risk Act) (collectively the “California Climate Laws”) violate the Supremacy Clause and limitations on extraterritorial regulation.
V&E Environmental Update
After little more than a week in office, there is still plenty of speculation, but priorities of the Trump 2.0 Administration are becoming more concrete.
V&E Energy Update
On December 26, 2024, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the Climate Change Superfund Act (“CCSA” or the “Act”) into law.
V&E Environmental Update
The incoming Trump Administration is expected to prioritize the rollback of Biden-era endangered species regulations, aiming to reduce the regulatory burden on land-intensive businesses and enhance energy independence. This shift may involve reinstating Trump-era rules that limit critical habitat designations and economic considerations in listing decisions. As these changes unfold, businesses could face fewer restrictions related to endangered species, potentially facilitating development, and reducing compliance costs.
On December 17, 2024, the Office of Fossil and Carbon Management of the Department of Energy (“DOE”) released the long-awaited Liquefied Natural Gas (“LNG”) Export Study (“Study”). The Study was released 11 months after the Biden administration paused pending decisions to export LNG to non-Free Trade Agreement (“FTA”) countries on January 26, 2024.
V&E Environmental Update
In 2020, President-elect Donald Trump promised to ensure that “America’s most critical infrastructure projects” would not be “tied up and bogged down by an outrageously slow and burdensome federal approval process.” Much of the frustration with the federal approval process is directed at real-world implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) and its associated regulations.
The International Court of Justice has been asked to issue an advisory opinion on this question, and is currently hearing submissions from States, NGOs and international organisations.
In an Enforcement Notice released on December 5, 2024, the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”) announced that it will not take enforcement action against companies subject to California’s Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (“CCDAA”) for inaccurate or incomplete reporting of Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions for the first reports due in 2026, covering the reporting entity’s prior fiscal year.
V&E ESG Update
During the 2024 campaign, President-elect Donald Trump promised his supporters that he would direct federal agencies on day one to “immediately remove every single burdensome regulation driving up the cost of goods.” For the energy industry, a promise of rapid deregulation could result in significant revisions to the Biden administration’s numerous climate-focused rules. There are some actions that the new administration can take to immediately impact previous policies.
Published by Environmental Business Journal, January 10, 2025
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V&E Securities & ESG Update