On April 19, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Hughes v. PPL, No. 14-614. The case addressed the kinds of incentives that states are allowed (or not allowed) to provide for certain kinds of energy production. For this reason, some environmentalists were concerned that the decision could affect the legality of Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS)…
Apr 28
2016
2016
Feb 10
2016
2016
New England States Forge Ahead on Climate Action Despite Supreme Court’s Stay of Clean Power Plan
Yesterday, the Supreme Court sided with Big Coal and other climate polluters when it put a hold on President Obama’s historic Clean Power Plan. But this is just a temporary setback for meaningful federal action on climate change. The good news is that the Clean Power Plan has only been put on hold; it hasn’t…
Oct 18
2015
2015
U.S. Supreme Court Hears EPSA Case
On Wednesday, October 14, 2015, I had the honor and privilege of attending the oral argument of FERC v. EPSA at the United States Supreme Court, in Washington, D.C. The case addresses Demand Response (DR) in electricity markets. You can see background on the case (including a discussion of what DR is and why it…
Jul 20
2015
2015
CLF Files Merits Brief in U.S. Supreme Court in EPSA Case
On July 16, 2015, CLF, together with several national environmental groups , filed an amicus curiæ brief in the United States Supreme Court in the currently pending Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) case. Our just-filed Supreme Court brief properly emphasizes the environmental benefits of demand response.
May 7
2015
2015
U. S. Supreme Court Agrees to Hear EPSA Case
On May 5, 2015, the U. S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a pair of related cases addressing so-called “Demand Response” in the electricity system. The pair of cases was referred to in the lower court as Electric Power Supply Association vs. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (or EPSA v. FERC). Because of a peculiarity in how the…
Feb 20
2015
2015
Questions and Answers On CLF’s Supreme Court Filing
On February 19, I posted a blog about the fact that CLF had joined with several state consumer advocates and with other environmental organizations to file an amicus curiæ brief in the United States Supreme Court. CLF and the others are urging the Court to hear an appeal from a D.C. Circuit Court ruling about…
Feb 19
2015
2015
CLF Files Brief in U.S. Supreme Court
On February 17, 2015, CLF joined with several state consumer advocates and with other environmental organizations to file an amicus curiæ brief in the United States Supreme Court, urging the Court to accept a case on appeal. The appeal is from a ruling by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, which had ruled that the Federal Energy Regulatory…
May 2
2014
2014
Breathing Easier: Long Overdue National Action for Cleaner Air Blessed by the Supreme Court
While New England has often led the nation in controlling air pollution, we have often had to contend with bad air blowing in from those states to our west that are less protective of the health of their citizens – those states allow power plants to dump dangerous pollutants into our shared air. Fortunately, the…
Jun 21
2011
2011
As goes Maine, so goes the nation . . .
It is appropriate that Maine Public Broadcasting did this solid little story about the Supreme Court decision in AEP v. Connecticut.
Jun 20
2011
2011
The Supreme Court and Global Warming Part II, some good news, some bad news
Today, the United States Supreme Court returned to the fundamental environmental challenge facing our nation and planet when it decided AEP v. Connecticut, a case in which a group of States, joined by the City of New York and private land trusts, brought a lawsuit against some of the largest emitters of the Greenhouse Gases causing the global warming and climate change that is causing harm to our environment and the public health.