Environmental and Natural Resources

FERC Seeks Over $508 Million to Accomplish 2023 Strategic Priorities

by Kelly A. Daly Yesterday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) submitted its Fiscal Year 2023 Congressional Justification. This document, which is submitted annually, consolidates the Annual Performance Plan with the Performance Budget Request for the primary purpose of communicating the agency’s accomplishments in the prior fiscal year and establishing goals to pursue its mission […]

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KD

Polar Vortex Highlights Problems with Texas Isolationist Model and Need for National Electric Grid

by Kelly A. Daly Following a week of extremely cold temperatures which caused millions of Texans to be without power, in some cases for longer than three days, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced that it will be conducting an investigation into the events that resulted in the loss of almost half of the […]

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KD

FERC Begins to Flex its Jurisdictional Muscles on Carbon Pricing

By Kelly A. Daly Yesterday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) weighed-in on the important role that carbon pricing, associated with state initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, could have on the nation’s electric market.  Not surprisingly, as the governmental entity with jurisdiction over the organized electric markets, FERC acknowledged that regional market rules that […]

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KD

FERC Issues COVID-19 Response to Address Filing Deadlines and Conferences

by Kelly A. Daly In an effort to ensure Americans have access to reliable energy during this unprecedented time, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) has identified a COVID-19 point of contact and instituted additional procedures to make sure regulated entities can quickly and efficiently receive guidance to assist them in pandemic preparations and operations. […]

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KD

FERC Adopts Favorable Buckeye XPress Environmental Assessment; Greenhouse Gas Emissions Not A Prohibitive Factor

By Kelly Daly, Farris Gillman, and Fabian Eichentopf[1] On January 23, 2020, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) adopted the Office of Environmental Projects’ (OEP) Environmental Assessment (EA) of Buckeye XPress, concluding that the project will have “no significant impact” on “the quality of the human environment.”[2]  The EA conditions approval on adherence to all […]

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KD
FG
Former Associate

FERC Asserts Authority: Declaratory Order Says Eminent Domain Exempted From State Sovereign Immunity

By Kelly Daly, Farris Gillman, and Fabian Eichentopf[1] In a recent declaratory order, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) asserted the right of its certificate holders to “exercise eminent domain authority over state-owned land.”[2]  The Natural Gas Act (“NGA”) provides that “[w]hen any holder of a certificate . . . cannot acquire by contract . […]

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KD
FG
Former Associate

FERC to Consider Updating PURPA: May Signal Big Changes Without New Legislation

by Farris J. Gillman The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced at its most recent monthly conference that it is taking a new look at PURPA. The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) was enacted in 1978 in response to the 1970’s energy crisis. It was meant to decrease energy demand by implementing conservation measures […]

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FG
Former Associate

DC Circuit Rules that FERC Must Consider Global Warming in Approving New Natural Gas Pipelines

by Timothy J. Sabo The United States has one of the most extensive natural gas pipeline networks in the world.  This vast network enables the ongoing switch away from coal-fired generation and toward a renewables and natural gas-based electric system.  And it has allowed cheap natural gas produced by fracking to be used throughout the […]

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TS
Former Counsel