Your Guide to Emerging Issues in Environmental Regulation and Litigation.
The Environmental Protection Agency has taken measures to roll back the “good neighbor” rule, which limits smokestack emissions affecting downwind areas in neighboring states under the Clean Air Act (CAA). The rule is intended to address transboundary ozone pollution that can exacerbate health hazards by requiring each state to implement regulations meant to reduce emissions …
On January 23, 2026, in a case involving an insurance coverage dispute, the Illinois Supreme Court answered a question certified by the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals about whether and, to what extent, a permit or regulation authorizing emissions is relevant to the application of a pollution exclusion contained in a standard-form commercial general liability …
On January 13, 2026, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a proposed rule to update procedural provisions of Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), which governs the water quality certification process for federally licensed or permitted projects. Section 401 of the Clean Water Act requires that before a federal agency can issue a …
Earlier this month, Seattle U.S. District Court Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright denied a motion for a preliminary injunction that sought to block the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from cutting solar power grant programs during the pendency of the litigation challenging the EPA’s termination of the Solar for All Program. Back in October 2025, 23 states and …
Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released its “Report on the Use of PFAS in Cosmetic Products and Associated Risks”, evaluating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and their use in cosmetic products. The Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (MoCRA) – the most significant expansion of the FDA’s authority to regulate cosmetics in …
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) has been one of the nation’s bedrock environmental laws since its enactment on January 1, 1970. Last year, an “interim final rule” was put into effect that rescinded all White House regulations related to NEPA, which had outlined how environmental analyses should be conducted. On January 7, 2026, the …
In 2023, the California State Assembly approved two bills – SB 253 and SB 261 – as part of the state legislature’s climate accountability package. SB 253 mandates that public and private companies doing business in California with annual gross revenues above $1 billion disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, and SB 261 requires that companies …
A three-judge appellate panel on Jan. 5 affirmed New Jersey’s environmental justice rules challenged by various industry and labor groups. Ultimately, the panel concluded that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) acted within its authority by adopting the legislature’s environmental justice rules (also known as the EJRules). In particular, the panel concluded that …
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Jan. 5 the process it will be using to notify manufacturers and users of certain toxic substances about imminently expiring confidential business information claims (CBI) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Companies request CBI claims as to proprietary information or knowledge – such as manufacturing processes and chemical formulas …
We at Goldberg Segalla’s Environmental Law Monitor would like to take this opportunity to wish all our subscribers and their families a very happy holiday season and peace and joy in the New Year. The world of environmental law was as busy as it was interesting this past year, and we expect the same in 2026. …