This week EPA released the newest version of its environmental justice (EJ) screening and mapping tool, EJScreen 2.3. EJScreen is a mapping tool that combines environmental and socioeconomic data and is used to screen for potentially overburdened communities that may be affected by federal government programs and activities. The major changes revealed in EJScreen 2.3 include: (1) two new environmental indicators, (2) a shift from presenting air toxics health risks as indicators, (3) new map layers, including for extreme heat and drinking water, and (4) modifications to the Supplemental Index ..read more

As we hit the halfway point of 2024, Louisiana is poised for significant legislative changes impacting civil procedure and litigation, energy, government, and insurance, among other sectors. Perhaps most notably, Act No. 4231 extends the prescriptive period for delictual actions and for damage to immovable property from one to two years. The new prescriptive period will apply to tort actions arising after the law’s effective date of July 1, 2024. In the insurance sector, Act No. 275 introduces significant changes to Louisiana’s Direct Action Statute (La. R.S. § 22:1269) taking effect August 1 ..read more

On Friday, June 28, 2024, the United States Supreme Court overturned the Chevron doctrine in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, 603 U.S. __ (2024), ushering in a new era of judicial review of agency action. The Chevron doctrine, which was established by the Supreme Court in 1984, used a two-step process to determine whether an agency’s statutory interpretation was to be afforded deference by the courts—(1) using traditional tools of statutory interpretation to determine if Congress clearly addressed the issue in the statute; and (2) determining whether the agency’s interpretation of an amb ..read more

On June 17, 2024, the States of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, and four oil and gas trade associations sued the Department of Interior (“DOI”) and its Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”) in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, State of Louisiana, et al. v. Haaland, et al., No. 2:2024-cv-00820, challenging BOEM’s new final rule entitled Risk Management and Financial Assurance for OCS Lease and Grant Obligations, 89 Fed. Reg. 31544 (Apr. 24, 2024) (the “Final Rule”). BOEM’s Final Rule requires current federal offshore lessees without an investment-grade credi ..read more

On May 17, 2024, the Texas Supreme Court held that when a lease requires royalties to be paid on all gas sold or used off the premises, but the valuation point for said royalties is “at the well,” gas used off premises as fuel is deductible as a matter of law. Carl v. Hilcorp Energy Company, — S.W.3d —-, No. 24-0036, 2024 WL 2226931 (Tex. May 17, 2024). This decision was brought to the Court as a certified question from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Carl v. Hilcorp Energy Company, —F.4th—, No. 22-20226, 2024 WL 137038 (5th Cir. Jan. 12, 2024) asking whether gas u ..read more

The Louisiana Legislative 2024 Regular Session has officially come to a close and five Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) bills were passed. The bills create a comprehensive legal framework for CCS projects, including clarifying eminent domain authority for CO2 pipelines, establishing unitization procedures for CCS reservoirs, providing liability protections for landowners, adjusting revenue sharing for local governments, and enhancing groundwater monitoring and community notifications. The passing of these bills represents a major step forward for CCS initiatives in Louisiana. The bills are ..read more

On May 23, 2024, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed into law the Community Air Monitoring Reliability Act (“the Act” or “CAMRA”). This Act sets standards for community air monitoring programs to ensure that the data collected from such programs provides the public accurate air quality information. The issue of community air monitoring has become increasingly important after the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 designated over $100 million to be used for air monitoring. The Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) awarded several of these grants to community and government groups in Louisiana ..read more

On May 31, the Louisiana Legislature passed HB 492 expressly providing that a pipeline company has authority to expropriate property rights for pipelines transporting carbon dioxide for Carbon Capture & Storage (CCS) projects.  This bill is one of several bills related to CCS projects introduced this legislative session. Prior to HB 492, the text of Louisiana Revised Statute 19:2(12) limited expropriation authority to entities engaged in the business of CCS, arguably excluding pipeline companies who only transport carbon dioxide for CCS projects.  Additionally, the prior version ..read more

On May 21, 2024, a group of 20 states, including Louisiana and Texas, filed an action in North Dakota district court challenging the Council on Environmental Quality’s (“CEQ”) finalized amendments to its National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) regulations, arguing that the rule seeks expanded environmental review without statutory authority. State of Iowa v. CEQ, 1:24-cv-00089. This suit is a facial challenge to the NEPA regulations that CEQ finalized on May 1, 2024. The finalized CEQ regulations are very similar to the proposed changes, published on July 31, 2023, and they seek to make si ..read more

In a recent decision, the United States Supreme Court held that Section 3 of the Federal Arbitration Act requires a court to stay a proceeding pending arbitration and provides no discretion for the court to dismiss the action. In Smith v. Spizzirri,1 the Supreme Court settled a significant circuit split on the interpretation of Section 3 of the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”). Whereas the Second, Third, Sixth, and Seventh Circuits held that Section 3 of the FAA mandated a stay of court proceedings, the First, Fifth, Eighth, and Ninth Circuits held that a district court had discretion to dismi ..read more