Earlier this year, Senate and House Republicans introduced the “Separation of Powers Restoration Act of 2016.” On July 12, 2016, the House passed the bill by a vote of 240-171, largely along party lines. The legislation would fundamentally alter a cornerstone of administrative law: Chevron deference. Chevron deference describes a doctrine articulated by a unanimous US Supreme Court in its 1984 decision, Chevron USA, … Continue Reading
On June 21, 2016, the US District Court for the District of Wyoming set aside the US Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) final rule regulating hydraulic fracturing on federal and Native American lands, finding that BLM lacked Congressional authority to promulgate the regulations. “Congress has not delegated to the Department of Interior the authority to regulate … Continue Reading
In one of the most closely watched environmental and administrative law cases this term, the US Supreme Court ruled unanimously against the government on Tuesday, May 31, 2016, affirming the Eighth Circuit’s decision allowing federal courts to review the US Army Corps of Engineers’ jurisdictional determinations. Jurisdictional determinations are decisions wherein the Corps determines whether wetlands or dry … Continue Reading
