Empire State Development Sells Former Arthur Kill Correctional Facility for Redevelopment as Film Studio

On August 7, 2017, Empire State Development (ESD) consummated the sale of State-owned surplus property on Staten Island formerly housing the Arthur Kill Correctional Facility to Broadway Stages, an owner and operator of film and television studios.  SPR principal Elizabeth Knauer advised ESD with respect to the environmental review of the project pursuant to the…

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State and Local Leaders Fight to Uphold America’s Paris Accord Climate Commitments with “America’s Pledge”

By: Zachary Berliner Last month, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and California Governor Jerry Brown launched “America’s Pledge,” an initiative which builds on recently-formed partnerships of American states, cities, and businesses committed to upholding the United States’ pledged greenhouse gas (“GHG”) reductions under the Paris climate agreement (including the “We Are Still In”…

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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…

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Court 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…

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U.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…

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NY 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…

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EPA 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…

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New 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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Suniva Petition for Tariff on Solar Cell and Panel Imports Threatens Progress of U.S. Solar Development

Although much attention has been focused on the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Accord, the greatest current threat to solar development in the U.S. is a petition for an import tariff filed earlier this year by Suniva, a solar cell and panel manufacturer in the state of Georgia. Suniva’s petition was filed with the U.S….

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Maggie Macdonald Speaking at Perrin Environmental Risk & Litigation Conference

SPR associate Maggie Macdonald will be speaking at the Perrin Environmental Risk & Litigation Conference on Tuesday, June 20,2017, on a panel concerning recent insurance coverage litigation.  The conference will be held at the Westin New York at Times Square.  More information on the conference topics and registration is available here.  Registration for in-house counsel…

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