On July 11, 2019, US EPA announced its new policy on Enhancing Effective Partnerships Between the EPA and the States in Civil Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Work (the Policy). The Policy was communicated as a memorandum from Assistant Administrator Susan Parker Bodine to the regional administrators. To date, the Policy is US EPA’s most comprehensive statement … Continue Reading
On June 25, 2019, US EPA issued a proposed rule that would reverse the “once in, always in” policy for sources of hazardous air pollutants (HAP) that has been in place for more than 20 years. The rulemaking formalizes a January 2018 US EPA memorandum repealing the policy, an action that was challenged by environmental groups and … Continue Reading
Government agencies may soon use a different framework for evaluating the environmental impact of their decisions. The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), the executive agency tasked with ensuring that federal agencies meet their obligations under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), published a notice on June 20, 2018 seeking input from the public about changes to the … Continue Reading
On January 25, 2018, Bill Wehrum, the new Assistant Administrator of US EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation, issued a memorandum to all Regional Air Division Directors rescinding US EPA’s historic “Once In Always In” (OIAI) policy for major sources under US EPA’s National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) program. Under the “Once In Always In” (OIAI) … Continue Reading
US Attorney General Jeff Sessions recently issued a new policy barring payments to non-governmental third parties as part of most civil and criminal settlements. The memorandum does not detail how the US Department of Justice (DOJ) will implement the policy, leaving much to departmental interpretation. The language is broad enough to have significant impacts on environmental settlements. … Continue Reading
