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Environmental

Every story on LexCircuit filed under environmental: court orders, regulation, ethics opinions, litigation and research, each summarized across its sources.

97 stories

UK · UKSCCourt order

UK Supreme Court backs insurer against Spain and France in Prestige oil spill arbitration case

The UK Supreme Court unanimously allowed the London Steam-Ship Owners' Mutual Insurance Association's appeal against Spain and France in the Prestige oil spill dispute. It held that a third party suing in breach of an arbitration clause under the conditional benefit principle breaches a contractual obligation, so the remedy is common law damages rather than equitable compensation. The arbitrators' monetary awards were upheld on that corrected basis.

Order (UK Supreme Court) → · Law Society Gazette
PA.Regulation

Pennsylvania Act 115 ties Game Commission entry onto private land to the state constitution's search-and-seizure clause

Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1431 was approved on October 22, 2026, as Act No. 115 of 2026, amending sections 303 and 901 of Title 34 (Game) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes. From December 21, 2026, Game Commission officers, employees and representatives may enter property outside buildings only in accordance with Article I, Section 8 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, the search-and-seizure clause; the former unconditional right to enter posted or unposted land is repealed.

Enrolled text (Pennsylvania General Assembly (palegis.us)) → · Pennsylvania Senate Republicans
U.S. FEDRegulation

United States extends BLM drilling permit fee authority through 2037

The License to Drill Act, H.R. 7831, was signed into law on October 20, 2026, amending section 35(d) of the Mineral Leasing Act. The act extends the Interior Secretary's duty to collect a fee for each new application for a permit to drill from 2026 through 2037, and directs that all fees collected for fiscal years 2027 through 2037 are transferred to the BLM Permit Processing Improvement Fund.

Enrolled text (govinfo.gov) → · The White House
D.D.C.Litigation

Justice Department moves to disqualify Judge Ana Reyes from East Potomac golf course case

Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. on October 16, 2026, asked U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes to recuse herself from the D.C. Preservation League's challenge to the administration's East Potomac golf course work, alleging hostility toward the government. The motion came days after Reyes issued a restraining order halting tree removal and sharply criticized government lawyers for failing to give promised notice.

Filing (The Washington Post) → · Bloomberg Law, The Washington Sun

Rulings this week

All court orders

U.S. FEDRegulation

Federal law restructures Crow Tribe water settlement funding into an MR&I Projects Account

President Trump signed S. 240, the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Amendments Act of 2025, into law on October 15, 2026, the White House said. The Act amends the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-291), repealing the municipal, rural and industrial water system provisions, creating an MR&I Projects Account in the Crow Settlement Fund that the Tribe uses for water infrastructure on its Montana reservation, and extending the Yellowtail Dam period to 20 years.

Enrolled text (Congress.gov) → · Northern Broadcasting System, GovInfo, The White House
U.S. FEDRegulation

Federal law requires a chemical-analysis methodology to identify seafood country of origin

S. 283, the Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act, was signed into law on October 15, 2026, the White House said. The Act requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to jointly develop a standard methodology, based on chemical analysis, for identifying the country of origin of seafood, to support enforcement against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.

Enrolled text (Congress.gov) → · U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation, GovInfo, The White House
D.C.People moves

Willkie hires Westinghouse nuclear counsel Raphael Kuyler as Washington energy partner

Willkie Farr & Gallagher hired Raphael Kuyler, a nuclear lawyer who joins from Westinghouse Electric, as a partner in its power and renewable energy practice in Washington, Bloomberg Law reported October 13, 2026. Law360 Pulse covered the hire October 14. Bloomberg Law said Kuyler advised Westinghouse on nuclear regulatory matters worldwide and led contract negotiations for major reactor projects.

Announcement (Bloomberg Law) → · Law360 Pulse
AUSTRALIA · HCACourt order

Australia's High Court rules planners must weigh overseas emissions in Mount Pleasant coal mine case

The High Court of Australia on October 7, 2026, dismissed MACH Energy's appeal over its Mount Pleasant coal mine expansion in a 3-2 ruling, finding planning authorities had to consider conditions minimizing all greenhouse gas emissions, including Scope 3 emissions from coal burned overseas. The decision upholds a 2025 NSW Court of Appeal win by a Hunter Valley residents' group.

Order (ABC News) → · Al Jazeera, AAP
U.S. FEDRoundup

Federal law roundup, week ending October 2, 2026: 2 developments

Two federal rules published September 29, 2026. The National Marine Fisheries Service added omitted inseason sablefish trip limits for West Coast groundfish fisheries, and the Environmental Protection Agency set a residue tolerance for the sodium salt of acifluorfen on sugar beet, with objections due November 30, 2026. Each item links to its Federal Register notice.

Entries (Federal Register) →
CAL.Roundup

State and local law roundup, week ending October 2, 2026: 23 developments

Twenty-three state and local measures dated September 25 to 29, 2026. California enacted laws on prescribed fire, children's meals, added-sugar menu warnings, diaper ingredients, disposable vapes, supplement sales to minors and disability-form fees. North Dakota, Texas, Arkansas and Georgia issued fuel emergency orders. New Jersey and New York signed school, reentry, Rutgers and climate bills, Massachusetts set emergency adult foster care rates, and San Jose paused detention-facility applications.

Entries (California Legislative Information) → · North Dakota Office of the Governor, City of San Jose, Office of the City Clerk (Legistar), Office of the Texas Governor +6
1ST CIR.Litigation

Twenty-one states, DC and five cities ask First Circuit to review NHTSA fuel-economy rollback

Twenty-one states, the District of Columbia and five cities, including California and New York, petitioned the First Circuit on October 2, 2026, to review NHTSA's SAFE Vehicles Rule III, which sets a fleetwide average of 34.9 miles per gallon by 2031, down from 50.4 under the Biden-era rule. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the rule violates the requirement that standards be set at the maximum feasible level, Reuters reported.

Filing (California Department of Justice) → · Reuters, Courthouse News Service, Spectrum News +1
CAL.Regulation

California blocks state tidelands infrastructure for new federal offshore oil leases

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1448 on September 29, 2026. The bill amends Public Resources Code section 6245 to bar the State Lands Commission and local trustees from entering new leases or conveyances authorizing new oil and gas infrastructure on tidelands and submerged lands to support Pacific outer continental shelf leases issued after January 1, 2026. Lease renewals tied to such federal leases require an informational agenda item and a 180-day pause before any vote.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California extends property-tax welfare exemption for conservation lands through 2032

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1668 on September 29, 2026, as an urgency tax levy that took effect immediately. It amends Revenue and Taxation Code section 214.02 to keep the property tax welfare exemption for land used exclusively to preserve native plants, animals and open space through the 2032 lien date, with repeal on January 1, 2033. The state will not reimburse local agencies for lost revenue.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California extends CEQA exemption for affordable housing to 2037 and adds public university housing

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1732 on September 29, 2026. It amends Public Resources Code section 21080.40 to extend the CEQA exemption for qualifying affordable housing projects until January 1, 2037, and to expand it to public university and public college housing projects. Projects must meet labor standards, site and location criteria, recorded affordability requirements and, for vacant sites, tribal cultural resource conditions.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California penalizes drone flights that interfere with wildfire suppression

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1749 on September 29, 2026. The bill adds Civil Code section 1714.57, prohibiting knowingly or recklessly operating a drone to interfere with wildfire suppression or related emergency response, including under an FAA temporary flight restriction. The Attorney General, county counsel, or city attorney may sue, with prevailing plaintiffs recovering civil penalties up to $75,000 per violation plus injunctive relief and attorney's fees.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California lets cities permit Joshua tree removal for commercial projects and sets in-lieu fees

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1808 on September 29, 2026, as an urgency statute effective immediately. It amends the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act so the Department of Fish and Wildlife may delegate take permits for commercial and industrial projects to cities, and sets in-lieu mitigation fees of $1,000, $200 or $150 per tree by height. Some homeowner permits are exempt from CEQA until a programmatic EIR is certified or January 1, 2032.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California creates a community-scale wildfire mitigation validation program

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1960 (Ch. 764, Stats. 2026) on September 29, 2026. It adds Public Resources Code section 4124.9, requiring CAL FIRE to set up a voluntary program recognizing communities that reach set levels of wildfire mitigation. Recognized communities may receive Wildfire Prevention Grants from fiscal year 2028–29. Recognition may not justify insurance rate, underwriting or mitigation-credit changes absent supporting empirical evidence.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California launches rapid-response framework for invasive golden mussels

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2032 on September 29, 2026, as an urgency statute taking immediate effect. It adds Fish and Game Code section 2150.6 exempting water agencies with control plans from restricted-species permits for invasive-mussel maintenance and research, section 2301.5 requiring the Department of Fish and Wildlife to issue guidance by April 1, 2027 and quarterly infestation maps, plus Food and Agricultural Code section 12824.1 and Water Code section 13371 for rapid-response coordination against golden mussels.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California extends streamlined habitat-restoration permitting to 2032

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2045 on September 29, 2026. It extends the Habitat Restoration and Enhancement Act from January 1, 2027 to January 1, 2032. Department of Fish and Wildlife approval of a restoration project now covers take only of the species the proponent lists in its application, and the department must set an application fee schedule by January 1, 2030 and report to the Legislature by December 31, 2029.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California requires major transit cities to zone regional transit hub districts for downtown housing by July 2027

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2074 on September 29, 2026. By July 1, 2027, each major transit city must designate at least one regional transit hub district where downtown housing developments are an allowed use eligible for streamlined ministerial approval. Cities may not set height limits below 150 feet or floor area ratios below six there, and at least a quarter of district area must allow 450 feet and a ratio of 12.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California authorizes regional landscape wildfire-resilience grants

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2513 (Ch. 768, Stats. 2026) on September 29, 2026. It lets the Department of Conservation, CAL FIRE and the Wildlife Conservation Board directly award regional landscape grants to regional or local entities to carry out regional wildfire priority strategies, makes advance grant payments permanent, and adds ignition prevention and roadside vegetation modification to activities eligible for CAL FIRE's local assistance grants.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California creates wildlife coexistence program and lets livestock guard dogs pursue wolves

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 1135, the California Wildlife Coexistence Act, on September 29, 2026. Upon appropriation, the Department of Fish and Wildlife must run a Wildlife Coexistence Program and a renamed Wolf-Livestock Coexistence and Compensation Program, spending at least half of compensation funds on nonlethal deterrence. Dogs guarding livestock or crops on their owner’s property may pursue wolves despite the general ban on dogs pursuing protected mammals.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California creates single coordinated 60-day review for wildfire mitigation projects

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 1370 on September 29, 2026. New Public Resources Code sections 4240 and following direct the Natural Resources Agency, with CalEPA, to run a single consolidated review of covered wildfire mitigation projects such as fuel breaks, defensible space and prescribed fire. CEQA does not apply, and decisions are due within 60 calendar days of a complete application. Authority to issue expedited authorizations ends January 1, 2029.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California exempts Concord Naval Weapons Station redevelopment from surplus-land rules

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 328 on September 29, 2026, as an urgency statute effective immediately. It amends Government Code section 54221 so the former Concord Naval Weapons Station can be disposed of as exempt surplus land for a project expected to include at least 10,000 homes, with 25% restricted to lower-income households for 55 years for rentals or 45 years for ownership, a project labor agreement and 30 days' notice to HCD.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California deems San Diego's Midway Rising environmental report CEQA-sufficient

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 344 (Chapter 786, Statutes of 2026) on September 29, 2026, as an urgency statute effective immediately. New Public Resources Code section 21080.77 deems San Diego's Midway Rising Specific Plan Subsequent Final Environmental Impact Report sufficient for CEQA, so project approvals may rely conclusively on it, and makes its mitigation measures enforceable conditions of approval. The project covers about 4,254 homes, 2,000 of them deed-restricted affordable.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California bars treating building-height impacts alone as significant under CEQA

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 958 on September 29, 2026. New Public Resources Code section 21080.82 provides that impacts of increased building height alone, such as shadow, air circulation, light reflection or attracting wildlife, are not significant under CEQA if the project's use and density were analyzed in a certified EIR, the site is previously graded infill without sensitive biological resources, the project is not industrial, and it fits local airport land use plans.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
U.S. FEDRegulation

NHTSA finalizes SAFE Vehicles Rule III resetting fuel-economy standards for model years 2022-2031

NHTSA published a final rule on Sept. 30 recalibrating Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards for passenger cars and light trucks for model years 2022 through 2031. NHTSA estimates the standards correspond to a fleetwide average of roughly 34.9 mpg in model year 2031. The rule ends trading of credits earned in model year 2028 and later and applies updated vehicle classification definitions from model year 2030. It takes effect Nov. 30.

Text (Federal Register) → · CollisionWeek, GM Authority, Business Fleet
CAL.Regulation

California bars using AI to fake public participation before government agencies

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 1159 on September 30, 2026. From January 1, 2027, no one may knowingly use AI to falsely represent that a natural person appeared before, submitted information to or engaged with a government agency. Under the Public Records Act, open-meeting laws, the Administrative Procedure Act, CEQA and the Coastal Act, AI systems, autonomous agents and robots are not persons or members of the public.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of Governor Gavin Newsom
CAL.Regulation

California opens CEQA-streamlined certification to fusion component plants and orders a fusion plan

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 925 (Ch. 831, Stats. 2026) on September 30, 2026. It lets developers of facilities that manufacture, produce or assemble components integral to fusion energy apply to the Energy Commission for certification as environmental leadership development projects, with CEQA streamlining, under Public Resources Code 25545. It also requires the commission to deliver a fusion energy strategic plan, including a licensing and permitting roadmap, to the Legislature by December 31, 2029.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of Governor Gavin Newsom, Neutron Bytes
D. COLO.Litigation

Colorado sues Department of Homeland Security over $500M Hudson immigrant detention facility contract

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security challenging a five-year contract exceeding $500 million with The GEO Group to operate a 1,200-bed immigration detention center in Hudson. The complaint alleges federal officials violated the National Environmental Policy Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the Immigration and Nationality Act by awarding the contract without the required environmental review.

Filing (U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado) → · Colorado Attorney General, Courthouse News Service, The Denver Post
NEB.Roundup

Law roundup: seven FAA airworthiness directives, IRS and HUD fee changes, Nebraska harvest weight relief

Sixteen federal rules and notices published September 24 to 28, plus one Nebraska executive order. They include seven FAA airworthiness directives and new IFR altitudes, an IRS estate tax closing letter fee rising from $56 to $76, a 1.05% HUD Section 108 guarantee fee for fiscal 2027, PHMSA's adoption of ASME Section XII for transport tanks, FTC rules of practice changes, and Nebraska's 90-day, permit-free 25% weight allowance for harvest haulers.

Entries (State of Nebraska, Office of the Governor) → · Federal Register
ALASKARoundup

State law roundup: 20 California laws on licensing, EV charging, elections and welfare, plus Alaska game rules

Twenty California laws signed September 18 to 25 and one Alaska regulation package. California extended three licensing boards to 2031, capped multifamily EV charger permit fees, widened streamlined EV permitting, allowed E15 under existing vapor-control certifications, set in-person vote-by-mail procedures, expanded translated election materials, dropped the CalWORKs 100-hour work test and will revoke licenses for six years after an injury DUI with four prior convictions. Alaska's archery and predator-control rules took effect September 23.

Entries (Alaska Online Public Notices) → · California Legislative Information
CAL.Regulation

California streamlines permits and caps fees for residential heat pumps

Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 222 on September 28, 2026, adding Chapter 7.5 to the Government Code as a matter of statewide concern. Cities and counties must offer asynchronous inspections of residential heat pump water heater and HVAC installations by July 1, 2027, cap permit fees at $150 and $200 respectively, and run online real-time automated permitting for qualifying swapouts by July 1, 2028. Plug-in ready window heat pump units rated 120 volts or less need no permit or inspection.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Office of the Governor
CAL.Regulation

California suspends summer-blend gasoline rule and orders fuel spot-market reports

On September 28, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom suspended California's seasonal summer-blend gasoline requirement for the remainder of the season and directed state agencies to enable winter-blend gasoline to be manufactured, imported, distributed, and sold immediately, exercising authority under SB 237 (Grayson, 2025). He separately directed the California Energy Commission, consulting CARB and the Division of Petroleum Market Oversight, to publish a regular public spot-market report for gasoline and diesel and to collect information on renewable diesel pricing.

Text (Office of Governor Gavin Newsom) → · Office of the Governor
D. MASS.Litigation

Boston sues Transportation Department over cancellation of $20M RAISE grant for Roxbury street project citing EV chargers

The City of Boston sued Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in Massachusetts federal court over the withdrawal of a $20 million RAISE grant awarded in 2022 for the Roxbury Resilient Corridors project. Boston alleges the department lacked authority under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to cancel the grant because the project included electric vehicle chargers, and that the rescission violated the Administrative Procedure Act and separation-of-powers principles.

Filing (U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts) → · Reuters, Law360, Boston 25 News +1
2D CIR.Litigation

Fifteen states and Harris County petition Second Circuit to vacate FAA environmental review for commercial drone deliveries

A coalition of 15 states and Harris County, Texas, petitioned the Second Circuit to review and set aside the Federal Aviation Administration's nationwide environmental review for commercial drone package deliveries. The petitioners contend the agency violated the National Environmental Policy Act by approving nationwide operations without adequately analyzing safety risks and environmental impacts, including noise from delivery hubs. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the assessment falls far short of proper analysis.

Filing (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit) → · Reuters, Bloomberg Law, Law Commentary +1
U.S. FEDRegulation

Trump signs MAPOceans Act requiring public database of offshore recreation restrictions

President Trump signed the Modernizing Access to Our Public Oceans Act (S. 759) on September 25, 2026. The Secretary of Commerce, through NOAA, must set data standards within 31 months and, within four years, publish on a public website geospatial data identifying U.S. exclusive economic zone areas subject to restrictions on fishing, boating and other recreation, refreshed at least twice a year. The act took effect on signing; no public law number had yet been assigned.

Enrolled text (GovInfo (U.S. Government Publishing Office)) → · The White House, Congress.gov
W.D. MICH.Court order

Western District of Michigan dismisses Michigan’s antitrust suit against oil majors for lack of antitrust standing

U.S. District Judge Jane M. Beckering dismissed Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel’s antitrust suit against BP, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Shell, and the American Petroleum Institute on September 22, 2026. The court held Michigan lacked antitrust standing under the Sherman and Clayton Acts: the alleged decades-long conspiracy was not plausibly pleaded to have proximately caused retail energy overcharges, and Illinois Brick bars most indirect-purchaser overcharge damages. Beckering dismissed the federal claim with prejudice and declined supplemental jurisdiction over the state claim.

Opinion (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan) → · Reuters, Legal Newsline, The Seattle Times
N.D. CAL.Litigation

California and Energy Commission sue Trump administration over $111 million Morro Bay offshore wind lease buyout

California Attorney General Rob Bonta and the California Energy Commission sued the Department of the Interior, federal officials, and Invenergy California Offshore in federal court on Tuesday. The fifty-four-page complaint challenges a June 2026 agreement paying Invenergy over $111 million to surrender its two-gigawatt Morro Bay offshore wind lease. California alleges the buyout violates the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, the Administrative Procedure Act, and constitutional spending limits while requiring fossil-fuel investments.

Filing (U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California) → · Associated Press, The Morning Call, California Department of Justice +1
U.S. FEDLitigation

Eight states sue Trump administration and Bluepoint Wind over $765 million offshore wind lease buyout

New York Attorney General Letitia James and a coalition of eight states sued the Department of the Interior, federal officials, and Bluepoint Wind in Brooklyn federal court on Tuesday. The eighty-one-page complaint challenges a $765 million Judgment Fund settlement that canceled Bluepoint's 2.4-gigawatt New York Bight offshore wind lease. The states allege the agreement illegally diverts taxpayer funds to a liquefied natural gas project, violating federal energy and environmental statutes.

Filing (U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York) → · Associated Press, The Morning Call, Office of the New York State Attorney General
CAL.Regulation

California requires the state air board to post landfill methane temperature and monitoring data online

AB 2674 (Chapter 406), approved September 20, added Section 39732 to the Health and Safety Code, requiring the State Air Resources Board to post on its website the temperature and monitoring data it receives regarding methane emissions from landfills. Legislative findings cite the board's 2010 landfill methane regulations and state that public posting increases trust and transparency and helps nearby communities protect themselves.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California reenacts conditional-exemption rules for small-quantity hazardous waste treatment

AB 2776 (Chapter 408), approved September 20, reenacted Health and Safety Code Section 25201.5 governing generators that treat small quantities of hazardous waste under a conditional exemption or permit-by-rule. The section keeps the 500-pound or 55-gallon monthly threshold, requires 60-day advance notice to the department or CUPA, three years of onsite records, and unit decontamination on closure.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California lets officers and code enforcement boot vehicles of repeat illegal dumpers with delinquent fines

SB 1218 (Chapter 425), approved September 20, added Vehicle Code Section 22651.10, authorizing peace officers and salaried code-enforcement employees to immobilize a vehicle on a highway or public lands when the registered owner has five or more delinquent illegal-dumping violation notices, or two or more delinquent commercial-quantity dumping notices. Release requires identification, proof of payment or an active payment plan, and current registration.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California exempts day care centers in residential areas from CEQA review

SB 299 (Chapter 413), approved September 20, added Section 21080.68 to the Public Resources Code, exempting from the California Environmental Quality Act any project consisting exclusively of a day care center located in a residential area. Existing law already exempted day care centers outside residential areas. The exemption excludes projects within 3,200 feet of active oil or gas extraction or refining facilities and projects on natural and protected lands.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California extends battery producer stewardship to medium-format batteries with per-county collection minimums

SB 501 (Chapter 414), approved September 20, amended the Responsible Battery Recycling Act of 2022's stewardship-plan requirements in Public Resources Code Section 42422.1, extending the extended-producer-responsibility program to medium-format batteries. Plans must provide free-at-drop-off collection in every county: at least 10 sites per county or one per 15,000 people for small format, and at least five sites per county or one per 30,000 people in larger counties for medium format.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California directs its air board to build a hydrogen sulfide response framework for unregulated sources

SB 58 (Chapter 411), approved September 20, added Section 41514.7 to the Health and Safety Code, directing the State Air Resources Board to develop a response framework for fugitive and natural sources of hydrogen sulfide gas. The board must consult local air districts, health and emergency agencies, tribes, and community organizations, hold at least three public workshops, and estimate implementation resources.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California conditions data-center CEQA streamlining on zero-carbon power, water, and community terms

SB 887 (Chapter 439), signed September 21, added data centers to California's environmental leadership development project program under the California Environmental Quality Act, opening a path to expedited judicial review. To qualify, a project must prepay interconnection costs, add no fossil fuel use, install four-hour zero-carbon storage at peak demand, use recycled or waterless cooling, reach 100 percent zero-carbon electricity within five years, and sign an enforceable community benefits agreement.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California folds data-center demand into urban water-shortage planning

AB 2619 (Chapter 437), signed September 21, adds data-center electricity demand to the factors shaping urban water-shortage contingency planning. Urban water suppliers must incorporate the unconstrained demand of data centers, irrigation, and other large users into their annual water supply and demand assessments, weighing weather, growth, and supply-management policies for the current year and one dry year against available supply, infrastructure constraints, and shortage response actions.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California conditions data-center approvals on water-supply and workforce disclosures

AB 2469 (Chapter 436), signed September 21, bars cities and counties from approving permits for data-center construction or water-use-increasing expansions unless the applicant supplies a water supply assessment, a water scarcity plan beginning in 2028, projected water use and efficiency measures, and workforce disclosures. Applicants must bear the full cost of required water infrastructure improvements. Meeting the conditions does not obligate the locality to approve the project.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California authorizes incentive payments for recycled beverage-container materials

AB 2481 (Chapter 403), signed September 20, adds Public Resources Code section 14549.1, authorizing CalRecycle, subject to available funds, to pay quality incentive payments per beverage-container material type: up to $60 per ton for color-sorted glass used to make glass beverage containers in California, up to $30 per ton for other glass products, up to $180 per ton for resin-sorted plastic, and up to $125 per ton for clean aluminum. Only one payment per container is allowed.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California extends Broomrape Program to 2030 and revises weed funding

AB 2326 (Chapter 395), signed September 20, extends the Broomrape Program in the Department of Food and Agriculture by two years to July 1, 2030, and expands assessed commodities from processing tomatoes to any broomrape-impacted commodity the secretary specifies. It revises Noxious Weed Management Account rules so the 60 percent control-and-abatement share goes only to eligible weed management areas, and raises the administration cost cap from 10 to 25 percent. The bill appropriates continuously appropriated funds.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California extends rural organic-waste exemptions and credits biomethane

AB 643 (Chapter 358), signed September 20, extends rural exemptions from organic-waste collection and procurement requirements to January 1, 2037, renewable in five-year increments. By January 1, 2027, CalRecycle must let jurisdictions count pipeline biomethane converted from landfill-diverted organic waste toward recovered organic waste procurement targets. The law also expands countable procurement to vermicomposting, mushroom compost, tree-trimming mulch, and limited edible food recovery.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California extends endangered-species take permits to species proposed for listing

AB 550 (Chapter 357), signed September 20, authorizes the Department of Fish and Wildlife to permit incidental take of species proposed for listing under the California Endangered Species Act, expanding a program previously limited to listed and candidate species. The governor's release describes the measure as covering take associated with renewable electrical generation facilities. Permits require minimized and fully mitigated impacts with adequate funding, plus a no-jeopardy determination based on best available science.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
CAL.Regulation

California requires landfill heat monitoring with $100,000 daily penalties

AB 28 (Chapter 356), signed September 20, requires landfill owners and operators to notify CalRecycle, water boards, air agencies, and local enforcement bodies upon a subsurface elevated temperature event, defined as subsurface temperatures persistently over 131 degrees Fahrenheit, and to implement mitigation including a corrective action plan. CalRecycle may assume enforcement, recover its costs, and impose administrative civil penalties up to $100,000 per day. The law creates a continuously appropriated community mitigation fund.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · Governor of California
D.C.People moves

Crowell & Moring adds former EPA counsel Michele Knorr in D.C. environment group

Crowell & Moring announced on September 22, 2026 that Michele Knorr, a former attorney in the U.S. EPA Office of General Counsel, joined as senior counsel in its Environment & Natural Resources Group in Washington, D.C., Law360 Pulse reported the following day. Knorr will advise on agricultural technology and chemical regulatory issues, including FIFRA and crop-protection matters.

Announcement (Crowell & Moring) → · Law360 Pulse
UKPeople moves

Quinn Emanuel London head Richard East joins Mariana dam claimant team with Pogust Goodhead

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan assigned London office head and senior partner Richard East to the Mariana dam litigation claimant team alongside Pogust Goodhead, Law.com International reported on 21–September 22, 2026. The London group action against BHP over Brazil’s 2015 Fundão dam collapse involves a claimant-representation dispute with Bailey Glasser International heading toward an October hearing, with reported damages exposure of up to $36 billion.

Announcement (Law.com International) →
CAL.Regulation

California requires large data centers to report energy and operational data to the Energy Commission

Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 1577 on September 21, 2026, chaptered as Cal. Stats. 2026, ch. 434 and adding Public Resources Code section 25302.10. From January 1, 2027, owners and operators of data centers of at least 10 megawatts must report operational data to the Energy Commission upon energization and after any substantive change. The Commission publishes the data annually in anonymized, aggregated form and adds biennial data-center load assessments to integrated energy policy reports from 2029.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) →
CAL.Regulation

California allows conditional sale of aftermarket emissions parts pending CARB approval

Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1069 (Chapter 244, Statutes of 2026) on September 16, 2026; it takes effect January 1, 2027. The law creates a conditional approval pathway for makers of emissions-related aftermarket parts. Manufacturers that file complete California Air Resources Board executive-order applications, backed by emissions testing and technical documentation, may sell, advertise and install parts while the board completes its review. Conditional approvals last two years; CARB keeps authority to approve or deny the final order.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · SEMA
CAL.Regulation

California extends smog-check exemption to collector cars through the 1985 model year

California signed Senate Bill 1392 on September 16, 2026. The law phases in biennial smog-check exemptions for collector motor vehicles meeting Vehicle Code section 259 criteria, extending eligibility from pre-1976 vehicles to pre-1986 model years by 2033. The exemption phases in one model year at a time beginning January 1, 2028, for pre-1981 vehicles. Older collector cars at least 35 model years old gain partial test exemptions if insured as collectors and meeting emissions standards.

Enrolled text (California Legislative Information) → · CarBuzz
U.S. FEDRegulation

EPA finalizes repeal of 2024 carbon pollution standards for coal and gas power plants

The Environmental Protection Agency published a final rule on September 17, 2026 repealing most of the 2024 Carbon Pollution Standards for fossil fuel-fired power plants, effective November 16, 2026. The repeal removes emission guidelines for existing steam units and the carbon capture-based standards for modified coal units and new base load gas turbines. Administrator Lee Zeldin announced it in Houston on September 14, projecting $310 billion in savings; EPA also proposed rescinding all remaining power-sector greenhouse gas standards.

Enrolled text (Federal Register) → · EPA, CNN, NPR Illinois