Posts by sprlaw
Second Circuit Decision Provides States Latitude to Enact Renewable Energy Incentive Programs
On June 28, 2017, in Allco Finance Ltd. v. Klee, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected two related challenges alleging that Connecticut programs pertaining to renewable energy generation violated federal law, bolstering states’ flexibility to craft renewable energy incentive programs. In doing so, the Second Circuit became the first federal court…
Read MoreCourt Dismisses Article 78 Proceeding Against the Village of Tuckahoe
The New York State Supreme Court (Westchester County) has dismissed an Article 78 proceeding that challenged the Village of Tuckahoe Planning Board’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (“SEQRA”) determination and Site Plan Approval, as well as the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (“NYSDEC’s”) selected New York State Brownfield Cleanup Program (“BCP”) remedy for…
Read MoreU.S. Supreme Court Establishes Multi-Factor Test to Define “Denominator” in Regulatory Takings Cases
On June 23, 2017, the United States Supreme Court in Murr v. Wisconsin announced a new test for defining the proper unit of property whose value is to be measured in determining whether a governmental regulation has gone “too far” and caused a regulatory taking. The majority rejected opposing bright-line tests advocated by the parties…
Read MoreNY State Legislature Passes Bill to Regulate Petroleum-Carrying Vessels on the Hudson River
By: Zachary Berliner On June 21, the New York State Senate passed by a 61-to-1 vote a bill allowing state authorities to consider environmental impacts in reviewing permit applications for the operation of petroleum-bearing vessels on the Hudson River. It now awaits Governor Andrew Cuomo’s signature after being passed by a similar bipartisan margin in…
Read MoreEPA and the Corps Launch Effort to Rescind and Replace the 2015 “Clean Water Rule”
Also by: Zachary Berliner On June 27, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“USACE”) released a joint proposal to rescind and ultimately replace the Obama administration’s 2015 “Clean Water Rule” (the “Rule”). The Rule defines the extent of federal jurisdiction over “waters of the United States” under…
Read MoreNew York State Department of Health Updates Soil Vapor Intrusion Guidance
The N.Y. Department of Health (“NYSDOH”) recently revised its guidance on soil vapor intrusion, tightening guidelines on certain volatile chemicals and loosening guidelines on others. The revisions consist of an updated set of Soil Vapor/Indoor Air Decision Matrices, which prescribe recommended actions based on the concentrations of a specified chemical vapor inside a building and…
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