More Regulations And Deregulations | Climate Change Resources

REGULATIONS AND DEREGULATIONS

The list below highlights some of the many policies enacted under the Biden administration and those overturned.

REGULATIONS

U.S. Department of the Interior

BIDEN SUED: Pausing new federal oil and gas leasing

08/16/21

After pausing new oil and gas leasing for nearly seven months, the Biden administration said it would resume auctions in response to a preliminary injunction issued by a Louisiana judge in June.

8/5/21 ADDED

The Washington Post

Establishing EV target of half of new car sales by 2030

By Dino Grandoni and Brady Dennis 08/05/21

President Biden signed an executive order calling for half of all new cars and light trucks sold in 2030 to be electric or plug-in hybrids.

7/15/21 ADDED

The Washington Post

Ending industrial-scale logging of old-growth on Tongrass National Forest

By Juliet Eilperin 07/15/21

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the Biden administration would cancel three old-growth timber sales in Alaska's Tongass National Forest. It would still allow Alaska Natives and small-scale timber operators to selectively log some old-growth trees.…

6/8/21 ADDED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Phasing out uses of weedkilling pesticide propazine

05/08/21

The Biden administration said it had reached an agreement to phase out use of the chemical, which had been shown to harm an array of endangered species...

6/7/21 PROPOSED

phmsa.dot.gov

Requiring pipeline industry to curb methane leaks

06/07/21

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration notified the pipeline industry that they're legally required to fix leaks of methane, a potent greenhous gas, in their pipelines and pipeline facilities under the Protecting our Infrastructure…

5/25/21 PROPOSED

The Washington Post

Expanding offshore wind power off California’s coast

By Joshua Partlow 05/25/21

Biden officials from the Interior and Defense departments reached an agreement with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) to identify two areas for potential offshore wind development in the Pacific Ocean. If fully developed, they could…

5/17/21 PROPOSED

The Washington Post

Establishing new Energy Star standards for heat pumps and investing in innovation

By Tik Root 05/17/21

Biden officials announced the government will develop new Energy Star ratings for electric heat pumps and invest $10 million in research and deployment of heat pump technology...

4/27/21 ADDED

Federal Highway Administration

Accelerating transmission on the U.S. electricity grid

04/27/21

Biden officials took steps to speed transmission on the electricity grid, including issuing a new Transportation Department guidance that allows the use of existing highway rights of way for siting transmission lines and new Energy…

4/22/21 ADDED

The Washington Post

Cutting U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 50 to 52 percent by 2030

By Brady Dennis, Juliet Eilperin and Steven Mufson 04/22/21

President Biden pledged the U.S. would cut its greenhouse gas emissions by between 50 and 52 percent, compared to 2005 levels, by the end of the decade...

4/15/21 ADDED

U.S. Department of the Interior

Launching Interior Department climate change task force

04/15/21

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on April 16, 2021 signed Secretarial Order 3399, establishing a climate task force and instructing the department to prioritize environmental justice concerns, tribal rights and scientific transparency in decisions through the…

2/26/21 ADDED

The White House

A Return to Science: Evidence-Based Estimates of the Benefits of Reducing Climate Pollution

02/26/21

President Biden issued a Memorandum directing Federal agencies to make decisions guided by the best available science and data. Today, we are taking an important early step in bringing evidence-based principles back into the process…

AP News

Science report: US should make less plastic to save oceans

By Seth Borenstein 12/01/21

America needs to rethink and reduce the way it generates plastics because so much of the material is littering the oceans and other waters, the National Academy of Sciences says in a new report.

1/20/21 SUED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Streamlining U.S. Army Corps permits

09/28/21

Streamlined Army Corps of Engineers permitting for pipelines and other projects.

1/20/21 ADDED

THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR WASHINGTON

Launching review of significant Interior Department decisions

01/20/21

In Secretarial Order 3395, Biden officials subjected all major Interior Department decisions, including awarding new permits, to approval by a senior political appointee.

DEREGULATIONS

8/31/21 OVERTURNED

The Washington Post

Scaling back federal protections for waterways

By Dino Grandoni and Brady Dennis 08/31/21

A federal judge in Arizona threw out a Trump-era rule that scaled back federal protections for streams, wetlands and other waterways.

8/5/21 TARGETED

The Washington Post

Setting CO2 standards for cars and SUVs.

By Dino Grandoni and Juliet Eilperin 07/27/21

The Biden administration has proposed tightening fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas standards for the nation’s cars, pickup trucks and SUVs that were weakened by Trump, to reach an average of roughly 52 miles per gallon…

7/26/21 TARGETED

The Washington Post

Biden administration to curb toxic wastewater from coal plants with new rule

By Dino Grandoni 07/26/21

Weakening the power plant wastewater rule. EPA announced it would develop stricter limits on dumping toxic waste from power plants into waterways. But in the meantime, it would leave a Trump-era rule finalized in 2020…

6/30/21 OVERTURNED

The Washington Post

Lifting methane limits for oil and gas operations

By Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis 06/25/21

Biden signed a Congressional Review Act resolution, which passed both chambers, restoring a 2016 rule requiring oil and gas companies detect methane leaks and repair then...

6/10/21 OVERTURNED

EPA

Withdrawal of Trump-era guidance on certain uses of “forever chemicals”

06/10/21

EPA withdrew Trump-era guidance that Biden officials say “weakened” the agency’s ability to oversee certain uses of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS...

5/26/21 OVERTURNED

The Washington Post

Revoking EPA scientific ‘transparency’ rule

By Juliet Eilperin 02/01/21

The Environmental Protection Agency finalized a rule that formalized the decision by a Montana federal judge vacating a Trump-era rule restricting EPA's use of scientific studies in crafting public health rules...

5/17/21 OVERTURNED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Landfill emissions guidelines

05/17/21

Trump stalled a rule to limit landfill methane emissions. Biden restored it soon after a federal court ruling throwing out the Trump action...

5/7/21 OVERTURNED

ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS

Weakening exploratory Arctic drilling rule

By Associated Press 05/08/21

The Biden administration withdrew a proposed rule weakening standards governing oil and gas exploratory drilling in the Arctic Ocean. As a result, the Obama-era rule adopted in 2016 remains in effect...

4/23/21 OVERTURNED

EPA

Phasing out certain HFC uses

04/23/21

The EPA finalized a list of more climate-friendly refrigerants that could substitute for hydrofluorocarbons, potent greenhouse gases...

4/16/21 OVERTURNED

doi.gov

Revoking Trump Interior secretarial orders

04/16/21

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on April 16, 2021 signed Secretarial Order 3398, which reversed 12 secretarial orders issued under President Trump promoting fossil fuel development on public lands and waters...

4/9/21 OVERTURNED

doi.gov

Setting priorities for the Outer Continental Shelf

04/09/21

Biden officials issued a new solicitor's opinion on April 9, 2021 to override M-Opinion 37059, which prioritized offshore energy uses above other activities, including fishing...

1/20/21 OVERTURNED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Accelerating energy permitting

01/20/21

President Biden reversed a Trump-era executive order instructing agencies to speed up the development of energy projects such as pipelines.

1/20/21 OVERTURNED

The Washington Post

Blocking the Keystone XL Pipeline

By Brady Dennis and Steven Mufson 01/20/21

President Biden rescinded the 2017 cross-permit Trump granted for the Keystone XL pipeline.

1/20/21 TARGETED

The Washington Post

BIDEN SUED: Recalculating the social cost of carbon

By Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis 01/20/21

The Biden administration reestablished the panel that formulates the social cost of carbon, an estimate for the damage caused by climate change for federal cost-benefit analyses. As an interim measure, it placed the figure at…

1/20/21 OVERTURNED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Promoting “America First” offshore energy strategy

01/20/21

President Biden rescinded Donald Trump’s reversal of an Obama executive order promoting climate resilience in the northern Bering Sea.

1/20/21 OVERTURNED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Expediting infrastructure projects during pandemic

01/20/21

President Biden revoked Donald Trump’s instruction to agencies that they expedite infrastructure projects during the pandemic.

1/20/21 OVERTURNED

The Washington Post

Restoring federal flood protection standards

By Darryl Fears and Steven Mufson 01/20/21

President Biden restored federal flood standards Trump revoked in 2017.

The New York Times

How Is Climate Change Affecting Floods?

By Elena Shao 07/26/22

Floods can surge all year round, in every region of the world. But discerning the relationship between any given flood and climate change is no small feat, experts say, made difficult by limited historical records,…

The Washington Post

In maps, photos and videos, see the full force of Yellowstone’s floods

By N. Kirkpatrick, Jason Samenow, Dylan Moriarty and Laris Karklis 06/18/22

Every summer, millions flock to Yellowstone National Park and wait for the reliable eruption of the geyser Old Faithful. This week, visitors were caught in a unpredictable and massive explosion of water that coursed through…

Los Angeles Times

Floods leave Yellowstone landscape ‘dramatically changed’

By Matthew Brown and Lindsay Whitehurst 06/15/22

Floodwaters that rushed through Yellowstone National Park and surrounding communities earlier this week moved through Montana’s largest city on Wednesday, flooding farms and ranches and forcing the shutdown of its water treatment plant.

1/20/21 OVERTURNED

FEDERAL REGISTER

Promoting climate resilience through an executive order

01/20/21

President Biden restored a 2013 executive order on preparing for climate change impacts by issuing Executive Order 13990.

1/19/21 OVERTURNED

The Washington Post

Repealing the Clean Power Plan

By Steven Mufson 01/19/21

The D.C. Circuit vacated a Trump rule relaxing Obama-era greenhouse gas emissions limits on power plants.

The list below highlights 14 of the many dozens of Trump administration rollbacks which were enacted during the years 2017-2020.

FINALIZED 7/29/20

EPA

Coal Ash Rule, Finalized

07/29/20

Hazardous and Solid Waste Management System: Disposal of Coal Combustion Action:DocketNo.:Residuals from Electric Utilities; A Holistic Approach to Closure Part A: Deadline to Initiate Closure

Insideclimate News

Trump EPA Targets More Coal Ash Rules for Rollback. Water Pollution Rules, Too.

By James Bruggers 11/05/20

The Trump administration made another attempt on Monday to prop up the sagging coal industry by proposing to relax two Obama-era rules meant to curb water pollution from power plants and clean up the ponds…

NPR

Trump Administration Proposes Relaxing Rules On Waste From Coal Plants

By Reid Frazier 11/04/19

The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed relaxing two Obama-era regulations on waste products from coal-fired power plants, a move environmental groups say would prolong the risk of toxic spills or drinking water contamination.

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Coal Ash Rule

By EELP Staff 12/15/17

The Environmental & Energy Law Program is tracking the environmental regulatory rollbacks of the Trump administration.

IN LITIGATION 3/29/19

Energy & Environment

Keystone XL Pipeline, Presidential Permit

03/29/19

By virtue of the authority vested in me as President of the United States of America, I hereby grant permission, subject to the conditions herein set forth, to TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, L.P. (hereinafter referred to…

Reuters

Trump tries fresh approach with long-delayed Keystone XL pipeline

By Timothy Gardner, Eric Beech 03/30/19

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a new permission for TransCanada Corp to build the long-delayed Keystone pipeline for imports of Canadian oil, replacing his previous permits in a fresh attempt to get around…

E&E News

Trump permit revives pipeline work

By Hannah Northey and Timothy Cama 03/29/19

President Trump today issued a presidential permit authorizing the construction, operation and maintenance of the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Keystone XL Pipeline

By EELP Staff 02/13/18

The Environmental & Energy Law Program is tracking the environmental regulatory rollbacks of the Trump administration.

IN LITIGATION 8/5/20

Federal Register

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Regulations for Listing Endangered and Threatened Species and Designating Critical Habitat

08/05/20

We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively referred to as the “Services” or “we”), propose to add a definition of “habitat” to our regulations that implement…

VOX

The Endangered Species Act is incredibly popular and effective. Trump is weakening it anyway.

By Brian Resnick 08/12/19

In May, a United Nations panel on biodiversity released a massive, troubling report on the state of the world’s animals. The bottom line: As many as 1 million species are now at risk of extinction…

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Endangered Species Act Regulations

By EELP Staff 07/27/18

The Environmental & Energy Law Program is tracking the environmental regulatory rollbacks of the Trump administration.

FINALIZED 4/21/20

Federal Register

The Navigable Waters Protection Rule: Definition of “Waters of the United States”

04/21/20

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of the Army are publishing a final rule defining the scope of waters federally regulated under the Clean Water Act. The Navigable Waters Protection Rule is the second…

EarthJustice

Trump’s EPA Finalizes Its Gutting of Clean Water Rules

By Erin Fitzgerald 04/21/20

Today, as we prepare to celebrate Earth Day, Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final rule for the rollback of key parts of the Clean Water Rule. This move is part of a multi-rule rollback effort by the Trump…

Politico

Trump erodes water protections: 6 things to know

By Annie Snider 01/23/20

The Trump administration on Thursday signed its long-promised regulation to remove millions of miles of streams and roughly half the country’s wetlands from federal protection, the largest rollback of the Clean Water Act since the…

FINALIZED 7/8/19

Federal Register

Repeal of the Clean Power Plan; Emission Guidelines for Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Existing Electric Utility Generating Units; Revisions to Emission Guidelines Implementing Regulations

07/08/19

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is finalizing three separate and distinct rulemakings. First, the EPA is repealing the Clean Power Plan (CPP) because the Agency has determined that the CPP exceeded the EPA's statutory…

Yale Climate Connections

The Trump EPA strategy to undo Clean Power Plan

By Dana Nuccitelli 06/21/19

The Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on June 19 published its “Affordable Clean Energy” (ACE) rule to replace the Obama EPA’s Clean Power Plan (CPP). The replacement plan is essentially the Trump administration’s attempt…

VOX

Trump’s EPA just replaced Obama’s signature climate policy with a much weaker rule

By Umair Irfan 06/19/19

The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday killed President Obama’s signature climate change policy, the Clean Power Plan (CPP). It’s one of the few definitive wins in the Trump administration’s full-court press to undo and weaken…

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Clean Power Plan / Carbon Pollution Emission Guidelines

By EELP Staff 09/26/17

The Environmental & Energy Law Program is tracking the environmental regulatory rollbacks of the Trump administration.

IN LITIGATION 4/9/20

EPA

Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, In Litigation

04/09/20

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking final action establishing a subcategory of certain existing electric utility steam generating units (EGUs) firing eastern bituminous coal refuse (EBCR) for acid gas hazardous air pollutant (HAP)…

The Washington Post

EPA overhauls mercury pollution rule, despite opposition from industry and activists alike

By Brady Dennis and Juliet Eilperin 04/17/20

The Environmental Protection Agency changed the way the federal government calculates the costs and benefits of dangerous air pollutants, a shift that could restrict the ability of regulators to control toxins in the future.

The New York Times

E.P.A. Weakens Controls on Mercury

By Lisa Friedman and Coral Davenport 04/16/20

The agency is changing the way it calculates the benefits of mercury controls, a move that would effectively loosen the rules on other toxic pollutants. The Trump administration on Thursday weakened regulations on the release…

Trump EPA orders rollback of Obama mercury regulations

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER 12/29/18

The Trump administration has targeted an Obama-era regulation credited with helping dramatically reduce toxic mercury pollution from coal-fired power plants, saying the benefits to human health and the environment may not be worth the cost…

EELP

Mercury and Air Toxics Standards

By EELP Staff 09/27/17

Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) limit the amount of mercury and other toxic emissions from power plants. Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin that ends up in the water and soil, and concentrates up the…

FINALIZED 9/12/19

U.S. Department of the InteriorBureau of Land Management

Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program

09/12/19

The United States (US) Department of the Interior (DOI), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Alaska State Office, has prepared this environmental impact statement (EIS) in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as…

The Wall Street Journal

Interior Secretary Approves Oil Drilling in Alaska’s Arctic Refuge

By Timothy Puko 08/17/20

The Trump administration approved an oil leasing program for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on Monday, opening up the pristine 19-million-acre wilderness to drilling for the first time and making it difficult to unwind the…

The Washington Post

Trump finalizes drilling plan for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

By Juliet Eilperin 08/17/20

The Trump administration said Monday it will open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, a move that will allow oil and gas rights to be auctioned off in the heart of one of…

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge – Oil and Gas Development

09/27/17

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) consists of more than 19 million acres of wilderness in northeastern Alaska. The refuge includes some of the most pristine, untouched lands and waters within the United States. It…

IN LITIGATION 9/12/19

Bureau Of Land Management

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge – Oil and Gas Development, In Litigation

09/01/19

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has completed a Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program (Leasing EIS). The Final EIS addresses potential impacts associated with the BLM's…

The New York Times

Trump Administration Finalizes Plan to Open Arctic Refuge to Drilling

By Brad Plumer and Henry Fountain 08/17/20

The decision sets up a fierce legal battle over the fate of a vast, remote area that is home to polar bears, caribou and the promise of oil wealth.

EELP

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge – Oil and Gas Development

By EELP Staff 09/27/17

IN LITIGATION 3/25/20

EarthJustice

Dakota Access Pipeline, In Litigation

03/25/20

The Court returns once more to the segment of the Dakota Access Pipeline running under the Missouri River and to its effects on the Indian Tribes living nearby. In February 2017, Defendant U.S. Army Corps…

Reuters

U.S. court allows Dakota Access oil pipeline to stay open, but permit status unclear

By Reuters Staff 08/06/20

A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday said the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) does not have to be shut and drained per a lower court order, but a legal battle continued over the permit that allowed…

The New York Times

Dakota Access Pipeline to Shut Down Pending Review, Federal Judge Rules

By Jacey Fortin and Lisa Friedman 07/06/20

The Dakota Access Pipeline, an oil route from North Dakota to Illinois that has inspired intense protests and legal battles, must shut down pending an environmental review and be emptied of oil by Aug. 5,…

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Dakota Access Pipeline

10/24/17

The Dakota Access Pipeline (or DAPL) was built by Energy Transfer Partners to transport crude oil from the Bakken field in North Dakota to Illinois. The pipeline crosses under the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and…

IN LITIGATION 6/5/20

Federal Register

Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy

05/03/17

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. 1331 et seq., and in order…

NPR

Trump Administration Moves To Roll Back Offshore Drilling Safety Regulations

By Laurel Wamsley 05/03/19

The Trump Administration is rolling back some of the Obama-era safety regulations for offshore drilling that were meant to prevent a repeat of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion, the worst offshore oil spill in U.S.…

Environmental & Energy Law Program

Offshore Oil and Gas 5-Year Leasing Program

By EELP Staff 08/05/18

Following the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill, the Department of the Interior (DOI) underwent a significant reorganization and issued rules and guidance to fill regulatory gaps in emergency response and operational oversight (for more…

REPEALED 12/12/16

Environmental & Energy Law Program

BLM Land Use Planning 2.0

By EELP Staff 10/03/17

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages over 260 million acres of land and 700 million acres of subsurface mineral rights. This rule was crafted to bring more stakeholders into the land management process, and…

Reuters

Senate revokes Obama federal land-planning rule

By Valerie Volcovici 03/08/17

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday revoked a rule that aimed to give the public more input into federal land management decisions, the latest move by the Republican-led Congress to undo Obama administration environmental regulations it…

IN LITIGATION 8/19/20

Federal Register

Energy Conservation Program for Appliance Standards: Procedures for Evaluating Statutory Factors for Use in New or Revised Energy Conservation Standards

08/19/20

The Department of Energy is amending its decision-making process for selecting energy conservation standards by specifying that it will conduct a comparative analysis of the relative benefits and burdens of potential energy conservation standard levels…

Cleantechnica

NRDC Sues US Department Of Energy Over Efficiency Standards Process Changes

By Joe Vukovich 10/17/20

This may sound like a boring technical procedural issue, but it is part of an ongoing pattern to weaken a critically important program. And it’s illegal. Without strong efficiency standards, customers can’t be sure the…

State Of The Planet

The Climate Consequences of Rolling Back Energy Efficiency

By Hillary Aidun And Malia Libby 04/23/20

On Tuesday, April 14, thirteen states plus New York City and the District of Columbia sued the Department of Energy (DOE) to challenge revisions to the rule governing energy efficiency updates. A similar suit was filed by…

The Hill

13 states, green groups sue Trump administration over energy efficiency rollback

By Rebecca Beitsch 04/14/20

Thirteen states and several environmental groups filed separate lawsuits against the Trump administration on Tuesday seeking to block a rule they say will impede efforts to make a number of products more energy-efficient.