Visible impacts of climate change, like the unprecedented winter storm in Texas, underscore the need to integrate climate adaptation as a principal factor in energy security. With appropriate weatherization and increased battery storage, many believe that renewables can help assure an energy-secure future that is more resilient to the impacts of climate change.
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to promote the interests of American workers, businesses, consumers, and communities, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Policy.
This abstract is adapted from Rory Van Loo, The New Gatekeepers: Private Firms as Public Enforcers, 106 Va. L. Rev. 467 (2020), which examines the rise of the enforcer-firm through case studies of the industries that are home to the most valuable companies in technology, banking, oil, and pharmaceuticals.
This abstract is adapted from Alexandra B. Klass, Eminent Domain Law as Climate Policy, 2020 Wis. L. Rev. 49 (2020), which contends that states should consider limiting eminent domain rights for fossil fuel projects and extending eminent domain rights for certain clean energy projects as part of their state climate policies.
This Comment is written from the perspective of a practicing attorney who represents clients on the issues addressed in Prof. Joshua C. Macey’s Zombie Energy Laws, and focuses on the filed rate doctrine, which is one of the zombie energy laws Professor Macey identifies—a doctrine that is alive and kicking and still particularly relevant today.
With the dawn of the Joseph Biden Administration, there is renewed optimism that the United States will take steps to fulfill its responsibilities under the Paris Agreement and curb greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Electrification is a big step on this path, and the nation needs a cleaner, more resilient grid to support this reduced emissions future. But as University of Chicago Law Prof. Joshua C. Macey details in his article, Zombie Energy Laws, efforts to support mass electrification and decarbonization face a major stumbling block: zombies.
This Article traces the development of three legal rules—cost recovery for vertically integrated utilities, the requirement that regulators assess the financial viability of energy projects before issuing a certificate of public convenience and necessity, and the filed rate doctrine—that emerged out of the view that electric power companies should be shielded from market forces.
Because environmental justice is inherently a conversation about geography (i.e., where in our states, cities, and towns are environmental burdens most concentrated), maps represent a natural tool for articulating and addressing environmental justice issues.
CalEnviroScreen, California’s mapping tool that quantifies cumulative impacts in communities, has played a pivotal role in advancing environmental justice in the state. The tool continues to evolve with each version by incorporating new data sources, the latest data, and community involvement and feedback. The tool can be tailored to fit unique applications because the underlying data sets are publicly available. This Comment expands on the points raised in Dr.
This Article focuses on lessons learned by the author from state practice in environmental justice mapping and screening, and their relationship to addressing the central issue of cumulative impacts.