Environmental Justice
NYSDEC Issues Proposed Regulations and Forms to Implement Environmental Justice Siting Law and Add Type II Categories
On January 29, 2025, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) announced the release of Draft Amendments to the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) regulations, codified at 6 NYCRR Part 617, as well as accompanying proposed revisions to NYSDEC’s Short and Full Environmental Assessment Forms (EAFs). These proposed amendments incorporate provisions of…
NEPA Phase II Final Rule Goes into Effect, Bringing Climate Change and Environmental Justice to the Forefront
On July 1, 2024, the Council on Environmental Quality’s (CEQ) final rule implementing the revised National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Phase II regulations came into effect. This rule represents the culmination of the Biden Administration’s efforts to update and revise the Trump Administration’s 2020 modifications to NEPA. The Phase II rulemaking aimed to rearticulate key…
NYSDEC Publishes Proposed Guidance Incorporating Environmental Justice Considerations into Existing Permit Processes
On September 27, 2023, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) published a draft policy aimed at implementing Section 7(3) of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), which seeks to prevent disadvantaged communities from being disproportionately affected by greenhouse gas (GHG) or co-pollutant emissions. The draft policy lays out a procedure…
Biden Administration Proposes “Phase 2” Revisions to NEPA Regulations
On July 31, 2023, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for its second phase of revisions to the 2020 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) amendments. As a brief primer, NEPA imposes procedural requirements on all federal agencies to consider the effect of a project or action on the…
Governor Hochul Approves Changes to Environmental Justice Amendments
On March 3, 2023, Governor Hochul approved the New York State Legislature’s “chapter amendment” (S01317/A01286) to the environmental justice law that was enacted in December 2022 (S8830/A2103-D). The original legislation amended the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) process and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (NYSDEC) permit approval process to expressly incorporate…
Governor Hochul Approves Environmental Justice Amendments to SEQRA
On December 30, 2022, Governor Hochul approved a bill passed by the New York State Legislature (S8830/A2103-D), which incorporates environmental justice concerns into the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) review process and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (NYSDEC) state permit approval process. Governor Hochul’s approval of the law is subject to…