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Better Communication Among Regulators and the Regulated Can Improve Outcomes for Wastewater Permittees
As our understanding of the environment and anthropogenic impact grows, protection efforts increasingly spawn regulation. Media coverage of perceived harms to health and the environment and well-funded advocacy by conservation organizations usually eclipse the...
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Maine Governor Mills To Tap Heather Sanborn of Portland as Next Public Advocate
On December 5, 2024, Governor Janet Mills announced her intent to nominate former state senator and representative Heather Sanborn to serve as the next Public Advocate of the State of Maine. Sanborn, of Portland...
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Massachusetts Provides Extra Protection to Environmental Justice Communities from Air Pollution
In a groundbreaking move, effective July 1, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection will tighten the permitting requirement for certain existing and new sources of air pollution located near an environmental justice population...
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Unwrapping Maine's Gift to the Environment: A New Packaging Stewardship Program Set to Launch in 2026
Beginning in May of 2026, [1] owners of brands selling packaged products and importers of foreign-produced packaged products sold in Maine will be required to adhere to Maine’s Stewardship Program for Packaging. [2] Beginning...
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Governor Healey Enacts Transformative Clean Energy and Economic Development Laws: Streamlined Permitting, Equity Protections, and Extended Project Approvals
On November 20, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed the Massachusetts Leads Act, engrossing House Bill 5100 (the “MA Leads Act”), which, among many funding provisions, contains two changes that will significantly benefit project developers...
Blog
Balancing Local Control and State Mandates: The Implications of the MBTA Communities Act Ruling
The state’s highest court has affirmed the Legislature’s power to force towns to adopt denser, transit-friendly zoning. In 2021, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Communities Act (G. L. c. 40A, § 3A) amended...
Blog
Navigating Maine's Renewable Energy Rate Revisions: Key Insights on PUC Docket No. 2024-00137 and 2024-00149
The Maine PUC has recently opened two related dockets that will significantly impact the renewable energy industry. The first, Docket No. 2024-00137, is a follow-on docket to the PUC’s Investigation into the Stranded Cost...
Blog
Administrative Penalties Under Scrutiny: Jarkesy’s Potential Impact on EPA and Massachusetts Enforcement
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) often uses civil penalties to punish environmental violators. The EPA can either pursue a penalty through its internal administrative process or have the Justice Department file suit...
Blog
Massachusetts’ Mandated Multi-Family Zoning Moves Forward, But Some Towns Resist
Town Meetings across Massachusetts are voting on zoning bylaws that would encourage multi-family housing. According to Section 3A of the Zoning Act, passed in 2021, 177 cities and towns near MBTA transit must ensure...
Blog
Loper Bright and Massachusetts Environmental Law: Navigating the Boundaries of Federal and State Authority
While the SCOTUS’s Loper Bright Enterprises et al. (Loper) decision reversing Chevron was a win for those seeking to rein in the administrative state at the federal level, it does not sound the death...
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