On April 17, 2025, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS”) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (“NMFS”) (collectively the “Services”) published a notice in the Federal Register of a proposed rulemaking that would rescind the regulatory definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). The ESA prohibits “take” of threatened and endangered species.

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On December 13, 2024, PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (“PJM”), filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“Commission”) a modification to Part VII of its Open Access Transmission Tariff (“Tariff”), adding provisions to enable a one-time reliability-based expansion of the eligibility criteria for Transition Cycle #2 to allow a limited number of additional resources to enter…

On December 12, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (the “Service”) published notice in the Federal Register of a proposed rule to list the monarch butterfly as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). The proposed rule designates proposed critical habitat for the monarch in California and includes an ESA section 4(d)…

On November 21, 2024, Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) filed an application at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC or Commission) seeking approval of a new Electric Rule No. 30 (Electric Rule 30) to address the interconnection of non-residential customers requesting retail electric service at transmission-level voltages between 50 kilovolts (kV) and 230 kV…

On September 6, 2024, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) issued an order finding that the presence of a non-independent director, i.e., one who is affiliated with an investor, on the board of directors of a public utility or its upstream holding company creates an affiliation between the sponsor and the investor…

The Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council (EFSC) recently finalized rules clarifying its contested case procedures for energy project siting. These updates aim to improve clarity, align procedures with broader administrative rules, and address participation criteria for stakeholders. A contested case hearing resembles an administrative trial and is a culminating step in EFSC’s certification process.…

CAISO’s Interconnection Process Enhancements proposal faces protests from independent power producers, clean energy organizations, and renewable energy developers at FERC. Challengers claim that CAISO’s scoring criteria provide undue influence to load-serving entities (LSEs) and may violate principles of open access.

CAISO’s proposal addresses the backlog in its interconnection queue by prioritizing projects in zones with…

This post was co-authored by Stoel Rives summer associate Ryan Laws.

On April 12, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) published notice in the Federal Register of a final rule (89 Fed. Reg. 26070) that amends regulations regarding the issuance of enhancement of survival and incidental take permits under the Endangered Species Act. The…

This post was co-authored by Stoel Rives summer associate Connor McRobert.

On May 1, 2024, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published notice in the Federal Register of a final rule amending its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The final rule, known as the Phase II revisions to NEPA, comes nearly a year after CEQ issued its proposed rule and is mostly consistent with the proposed rule. Notably, the final rule emphasizes that NEPA contains action-forcing procedural requirements to implement the letter and spirit of the Act. This shifts the traditional view that NEPA is a purely procedural statute that only informs decision-making and does not mandate outcomes. Although CEQ intends these changes to add regulatory certainty, it is highly likely the final rule will be subject to court challenges. In addition to the new NEPA characterization, the final rule adopts multiple changes that substantially expand NEPA in scope and impact several aspects of the NEPA review process. Key changes in the final rule include:

Consideration of Climate Change. The final rule requires agencies to analyze the effects of climate change on projects and, conversely, the potential effects of projects on climate change. Specifically, where feasible, projects must quantify greenhouse gas emissions from the proposed action and alternatives. Broadly, the final rule adds climate change to a host of effects that an agency must already consider.Continue Reading Council on Environmental Quality Publishes Final Rule Substantially Amending NEPA

On May 13, 2024, at a special transmission reform meeting, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) issued Order No. 1920 “Building for the Future Through Electric Regional Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation” (Final Rule).[1]  The Final Rule builds upon Order No. 888, Order No. 890, and Order No. 1000, which developed…