Law Commons^™

Administrative Dissents, Sharon B. Jacobs

Publications

Commissioners, like judges, dissent. They do so at length, with vigor, and with persistence. Yet while separate judicial decisions are the subject of a rich literature, their administrative counterparts have long languished in obscurity. A closer look is warranted, however, because studying administrative dissent can enhance our understanding of internal agency operations as well as the relationships between agencies and other actors. This Article presents the results of an original review of separate statements at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission dating back four decades. It uses these findings to move beyond two common generalizations about …

Energy Deference, Sharon B. Jacobs

Publications

Electricity law is complex, and the Supreme Court knows it. Lawyers are familiar with the adage that generalist courts tend to defer to agency decisions where the subject matter is complex or technical. But what features of a case make the Court more or less likely to defer to the agency's judgment? And how exactly do deference regimes work in the presence of complexity? This essay offers insights gleaned from Court's opinion in Federal Energy Regulatory Commission v. Electric Power Supply Ass’n (“EPSA”). It explains, first, that Courts are highly deferential in energy cases due to both the complexity of …

Slides: Klamath Basin Agreements: Largest River Restoration Project In American History, Amy Cordalis

Innovations in Managing Western Water: New Approaches for Balancing Environmental, Social and Economic Outcomes (Martz Summer Conference, June 11-12)

Presenter: Amy Cordalis, Staff Attorney, Yurok Tribe

34 slides

Slides: Moffat Collection System Project, Travis Bray

Innovations in Managing Western Water: New Approaches for Balancing Environmental, Social and Economic Outcomes (Martz Summer Conference, June 11-12)

Presenter: Travis Bray, Project Manager, Moffat Collection System Project, Denver Water

45 slides

Bypassing Federalism And The Administrative Law Of Negawatts, Sharon B. Jacobs

Publications

Presidential unilateralism has become a defining feature of the executive branch. But a related and equally important phenomenon has been largely ignored: federal agency efforts to circumvent statutory federalism boundaries. This move, which the Article calls "bypassing federalism, " involves using existing jurisdictional authority to work defacto, rather than dejure, reallocations of power. The Article explores agency bypassing through the lens of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's ("FERC's") promotion of demand response in electricity markets. Demand response refers to customer sales of negative watts, or "negawatts," back to the electrical grid. FERC, eager to promote demand-side management programs but stymied …

The Administrative State's Passive Virtues, Sharon B. Jacobs

Publications

Fifty years ago, Alexander Bickel famousy suggested that courts use tools like standing, ripeness, and the political question doctrine to avoid reaching the merits of difficult cases. Yet despite the increasingly central role of administrative agencies in government, there have been no efforts to date to apply Bickel's insights to the bureaucracy. This Article remedies that deficit. The Article provides a three-part taxonomy of administrative restraint and offers case studies from federal agencies such as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Fish and Wildlife Service. It argues that agencies sometimes use restraint strategically for reasons …

Slides: Fuel Choice Determines Transmission, Doug Larson

Shifting Baselines and New Meridians: Water, Resources, Landscapes, and the Transformation of the American West (Summer Conference, June 4-6)

Presenter: Doug Larson, Western Interstate Energy Board

26 slides

Justice Delayed: A Tribal Attorney’S Perspective On Elwha River Dam Removal And Ecosystem Restoration, Russell W. Busch

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

Presenter: Russell W. Busch, Attorney for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe

10 pages.

Slides: Lessons Learned From The Development And Implementation Of An Adaptive Management Plan At Three Hydropower Plants In Northeastern Washington State, Bob Dach

Best Management Practices and Adaptive Management in Oil and Gas Development (May 12-13)

Presenter: Bob Dach, Federal Activities Specialist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mountain-Prairie Region, Lakewood, CO

11 slides

Protecting Biodiversity In The Relicensing Of Non-Federal Hydroelectric Projects In The United States: Consultation And Coordination Between Ferc And Fish, Wildlife And Water Quality Agencies And The Role Of The Endangered Species Act [Abstract], Michael Gheleta

Allocating and Managing Water for a Sustainable Future: Lessons from Around the World (Summer Conference, June 11-14)

2 pages.

Life Begins At 50: Ferc Relicensing Under The Federal Power Act, Thomas N. Russo

Dams: Water and Power in the New West (Summer Conference, June 2-4)

5 pages.

Environmental Benefits Of Reoperation, Relicensing, Decommissioning And Recapture, Richard Roos-Collins

Dams: Water and Power in the New West (Summer Conference, June 2-4)

35 pages.

Contains footnotes.

Dams: Their Costs And Benefits, Daniel F. Luecke

Dams: Water and Power in the New West (Summer Conference, June 2-4)

13 pages (includes illustrations).

Contains 3 pages of references.

New Legislative Approaches, Laird Noh

Water Organizations in a Changing West (Summer Conference, June 14-16)

7 pages.

Agenda: Moving The West's Water To New Uses: Winners And Losers, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

Moving the West's Water to New Uses: Winners and Losers (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

Conference organizers and/or faculty included University of Colorado Law School professors Lawrence J. MacDonnell and Mark Squillace.

Moving the West's Water to New Uses: Winners and Losers will be the theme for this year's water conference, June 6-8 at the Law School in Boulder. The conference will consider the changing demands for water in the West and the need to reallocate a portion of the existing uses of water to new uses.

The first day will provide the background by looking at the most likely sources of water to meet these demands, including agriculture, federal water projects, interstate transfers, and …

Opportunities For Improving The Ways We Use Water, Thomas M. Stetson

Western Water: Expanding Uses/Finite Supplies (Summer Conference, June 2-4)

40 pages.

Contains references.

Agenda: The Federal Impact On State Water Rights, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

The Federal Impact on State Water Rights (Summer Conference, June 11-13)

Conference organizers and/or speakers included University of Colorado School of Law professors James N. Corbridge, Jr., David H. Getches, Lawrence J. MacDonnell and Richard B. Collins.

In general, water rights are a matter of state law. However, the availability and development of water are affected by important federal rights, policies and programs. In this conference, an outstanding group of private practitioners, government representatives and academics consider this important topic.

Interstate Gas Pipeline Ratemaking And Contract Implications, Henry E. Brown

Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions for the Future of Regulatory Environment (March 24-25)

61 pages.

Contains references.

Contains 7 attachments.

Contractual And Other Considerations Affecting Producers, Pipelines And Distributors During Current Period Of Market Demand Constraints [Outline], Michael J. Manning

Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions for the Future of Regulatory Environment (March 24-25)

6 pages.

Drafting And Interpreting Sensitive Gas Purchase Contract Provisions, William D. Watson

Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions for the Future of Regulatory Environment (March 24-25)

8 pages.

Agenda: Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions For The Future Of Regulatory Environment, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, University Of Houston. Law Center

Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions for the Future of Regulatory Environment (March 24-25)

Contents:

The natural gas industry in transition / Ruth A. Maurer -- Legislative prospects for wellhead pricing of natural gas / Richard G. Morgan -- Off-system sales : will they ever return? : the interstate side / Robert C. McHugh -- Off-system sales : will they ever return? / Paul F. O'Konski -- Contractual and other considerations affecting producers, pipelines and distributors during current period of market demand constraints / Michael J. Manning -- Section 311 and 312 of the Natural Gas Policy Act of 1978 and Hinshaw pipelines / Lauren Eaton -- Drafting and interpreting sensitive gas purchase contract …

Off-System Sales – Will They Ever Return? (The Interstate Side), Robert C. Mchugh

Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions for the Future of Regulatory Environment (March 24-25)

27 pages (includes illustrations).

Contains 2 pages of references.

Contains 1 attachment.

Legislative Prospects For Wellhead Pricing Of Natural Gas, Richard G. Morgan

Natural Gas Symposium: Contract Solutions for the Future of Regulatory Environment (March 24-25)

162 pages.

Contains 16 attachments.