Energy and Utilities Law Commons^™

Federal Preemption And Clean Energy Floors, Jim Rossi, Thomas Hutton

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Federal policies regarding renewable and clean energy often lack clear definition, are incomplete, and are scattered across multiple statutes and agencies. Yet at the same time, recent decisions of both federal agencies and courts have attributed a preemptive effect to federal statutes that threatens to hobble innovation in renewable and clean energy policy by subnational regulators. One consequence of this approach is that most significant policies promoting clean and renewable energy are channeled toward subsidies from the federal fisc, rather than diverse policies undertaken independently by state governments or regional customers and suppliers. This Article argues that, contrary to many …

Regulation Of Energy By The Colorado Public Utilities Commission, William Hamilton Mcewan, Peter R. Nadel

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

The Legal Profession’S Critical Role In Systems-Level Bioenergy Decision-Making, Jody M. Endres

Pace Environmental Law Review

Law as a discipline thus must seek greater prominence in the raging debates on the efficacy of modeling as a bioenergy policy driver. To ultimately determine law’s proper role, Part II of my article first assesses the universe of key economic and lifecycle models used in current bioenergy policy initiatives, as well as the models deployed in general environmental decision-making that could affect the siting and operation of biomass cropping and bioenergy facilities. Part III then dissects these models to uncover the multiple ways in which law can improve models both structurally and procedurally to achieve greater accuracy. The conclusion …

Agenda: Water, Oil And Gas 101, University Of Colorado Boulder. Getches-Wilkinson Center For Natural Resources, Energy, And The Environment. Intermountain Oil And Gas Bmp Project, Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute, Sturm College Of Law, University Of Denver, Colorado Bar Association Cle, White & Jankowski, Llp

Water, Oil and Gas 101 (April 10)

Program co-chairs: Sarah Klahn, Matthew Sura; planning committee: Susan Daggett, Kathryn Mutz.

This full-day program, cosponsored by the Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute (Sturm College of Law, University of Denver), the Colorado Bar Association CLE, and White & Jankowski, LLP, was the first of a 3-part series focusing on water, oil and gas issues of critical interest in Colorado.

The first program provided an overview of the pertinent law and issues generated when the water, oil and gas industries interact; and addressed water quality concerns and the purchasing of water from municipalities for hydraulic fracturing and drilling. Program #2 is …

Market Power In Power Markets: The Filed-Rate Doctrine And Competition In Electricity, Sandeep Vaheesan

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

State and federal initiatives have opened the American electric power industry to competition over the past four decades. Although the process has not occurred uniformly across the country, wholesale electricity markets exist everywhere today. Independent power producers can construct generation facilities and sell their output to utilities and industrial customers through bilateral contracts. In many regions, centralized power markets now facilitate the sale of billions of dollars in electricity annually through auctions. Although market forces have replaced direct price regulation in electricity, antitrust enforcement has not expanded its role commensurately. A lack of competition has been a serious problem in …

The Food Safety Modernization Act’S True Implications For Sustainable Agriculture, Emily Walters

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

No abstract provided.

Wasting Our Options? Revisiting The Nuclear Waste Storage Problem, Randall W. Miller

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

No abstract provided.

Deep Water Offshore Oil Exploration Regulation: The Need For A Global Environmental Regulation Regime, Naama Hasson

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

Government regulation of deepwater offshore explorations has found it either difficult to evaluate the environmental impact, or too costly to perform the required review.1 Corporate self-regulation without effective government oversight will not adequately reduce the risk of accidents within the offshore oil exploration industry, nor will it ensure that corporations prepare effectively to respond to a major spill. The potential, near-term, financial benefit for the oil company prevails over the lowprobability risk that a major spill will occur. Recognizing that current domestic regulation lacks effective, continuous monitoring of complex offshore operations, another form of regulation appears necessary. If already-emerging principles …

Fractured Focus: Tribal Energy Development And The Regulatory Contest Over Hydraulic Fracturing In Indian Country, Mitchell Davis

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

No abstract provided.

Environmental Protection Or Mineral Theft: Potential Application Of The Fifth Amendment Takings Clause To U.S. Termination Of Unpatented Mining Claims, Beckett G. Cantley

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

The mining claim patent process was much less rigorous in the early days of mining when nearly anyone willing to expend the $500 on “patent improvements,” pay for a mineral survey, and pay the statutory purchase price could patent a mining claim very easily. Over time, the United States government has grown increasingly reluctant to patent mining claims and to allow mining activities to occur on unpatented federal public domain lands. The U.S. government argues that its reluctance to allow mining is simply an environmental concern. However, the U.S. tightening of private mining upon federal lands also coincides with a …

Masthead And Front Matter

Washington and Lee Journal of Energy, Climate, and the Environment

No abstract provided.

Beyond Solyndra: Examining The Department Of Energy's Loan Guarantee Program, Hilary Kao

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

In the year following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011, the renewable and clean energy industries faced significant turmoil— from natural disasters, to political maelstroms, from the Great Recession, to U.S. debt ceiling debates. The Department of Energy’s Loan Guarantee Program (“DOE LGP”), often a target since before it ever received a dollar of appropriations, has been both blamed and defended in the wake of the bankruptcy filing of Solyndra, a California-based solar panel manufacturer, in September 2011, because of the $535 million loan guarantee made to it by the Department of Energy (“DOE”) in 2009. Critics have suggested …

Small-Scale Generation: Issues In Standardizing Power Purchase Agreements, Steven Ferrey, Alejandro Moreno

Suffolk University Law School Faculty Works

This note provides an introduction to the issues surrounding the design of Power Purchase Agreement's (PPAs). Programs to attract investment in small-scale electricity generation, often powered by renewable energy sources, have become increasingly common in the developing world as governments seek to both expand access to electricity and improve sustainability. A valuable tool for such programs is a well-crafted, standardized power purchase agreement, which can reduce transaction costs for generators and government agencies alike and substantially improve the economics of small generation facilities. This note discusses key considerations in designing a standardized agreement for a small power producer program. The …

David Sive Award For Best Brief Overall, Ricardo Bonilla, Cara Brewer

Pace Environmental Law Review Online Companion

No abstract provided.

Commonwealth Edison Co. V. State Of Montana: Constitutional Limitations On State Energy Resource Taxation, Nancy K. Stalcup

Pepperdine Law Review

This note examines the case of Commonwealth Edison Co. v. State of Montana, where the United States Supreme Court analyzed and defined the permissible limitations of state energy resource taxation. While the Court adhered to the test of constitutional taxation established in Complete Auto Transit Inc. v. Brady, which strongly upheld a state's sovereign right to tax a local incident of interstate commerce, the Court failed to realize the practical ramifications of its ruling in the context o the nation's energy problems.

Energy, Environment And Lng: Perceptions And Perspectives Of Kaleidoscopic Issues, Robert E. Lutz

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Energy In The Eighties—Energy Law Symposium: Lng In Southern California, Robert E. Lutz

Pepperdine Law Review

In Malibu, California, on November 15, 1980, Pepperdine University School of Law hosted a symposium which focused on energy decision-making and the attorney's role in the energy regulatory process. A cross section of viewpoints was represented including: officers from the utility companies; personnel from federal and state regulatory agencies; landowners from the proposed siting area; and others who play an important role in deciding whether and how to bring LNG to California. The Symposium provided a forum for a panel discussion of the siting process. Western Liquefied Natural Gas's attempt to bring liquefied natural gas to Southern California was used …

The ‘Value Of Solar’ Rate: Designing An Improved Residential Solar Tariff, Karl R. Rábago

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

The most commonly adopted rate treatment for residential solar systems connected to the grid is net metering, or, as it is also known, net energy metering. The first net metering tariff was adopted in 1983, and the approach is part of utility policy in over 40 states in the U.S.

The Development Of Outer Continental Shelf Energy Resources, G. Kevin Jones

Pepperdine Law Review

An important source of oil and gas that has sparked much recent debate is the outer continental shelf (OCS). This article traces the history of the development of OCS energy resources as well as the official policies underlying federal governmental actions affecting the OCS. It also spotlights the basic conflict in terms of environmental concerns between coastal states and the federal government regarding their desired roles in the process of controlling OCS development.