Articles Posted in Trump Administration

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Even as the Trump administration moves to block state and local climate liability efforts, states and municipalities continue to advance lawsuits seeking to hold fossil fuel companies liable for harms associated with climate change. Most recently, the State of Hawaii initiated a climate deception lawsuit, and the City of Charleston, South Carolina, submitted a briefing in a pending case—each alleging that the fossil fuel industry engaged in a decades-long campaign to mislead the public about the risks of fossil fuel consumption and climate change. Both developments come as the Trump administration escalates its opposition to such suits, issuing on April 8 an executive order (EO), Protecting American Energy From State Overreach, targeting and filing lawsuits making constitutional challenges to state-led climate litigation and legislative actions—including a preemptive action against Hawaii just days before the state’s filing.

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As the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) steps back from defending its March 2024 Climate Disclosure Rule, companies face growing uncertainty in navigating an increasingly fragmented and uncertain landscape of state and international mandates—with no uniform standards in sight. This development signals a broader shift under the Trump administration, which has prioritized deregulation, withdrawn support for federal disclosure mandates, and signaled opposition toward state-level requirements. The resulting regulatory divide leaves companies with a patchwork of emerging rules and limited guidance on how to harmonize compliance across jurisdictions.

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The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a series of federal lawsuits against four states—New York, Vermont, Michigan and Hawaii—alleging that recent legislative and enforcement efforts to hold fossil fuel companies financially responsible for climate change unlawfully interfere with federal authority. The lawsuits, filed on April 30 and May 1, challenge two distinct forms of state-led climate action: (1) enacted climate superfund statutes in New York and Vermont, and (2) announced plans by Michigan and Hawaii to bring climate change litigation against fossil fuel companies under state tort law.

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Continuing with the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda, the White House issued a Presidential Memorandum on April 9 titled Directing the Appeal of Unlawful Regulations. It instructs executive agencies to repeal regulations that, in the administration’s view, are “unlawful” in light of 10 recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The directive builds on Executive Order 14219 and the broader “Department of Government Efficiency” initiative and calls for a sweeping review and repeal process.

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On April 7, the Office of Policy for U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published a Request for Information (RFI) seeking input from industry professionals, grid operators, local communities, Tribal governments, and other stakeholders regarding the development and operation of AI infrastructure—including data centers—on DOE-owned or managed lands. This initiative aligns with the January 2025 Executive Order, Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence, which underscores AI as a national and economic security priority. DOE is hoping the RFI provides information that allows it to better understand site interest, strategic data center design approaches, potential power needs, financial and contractual considerations related to leasing DOE-owned or managed lands, and the potential benefits and challenges associated with hosting AI infrastructure on DOE land.

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The opportunity zone tax program was introduced during President Donald Trump’s first term as part of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Its main goal was to encourage investments in economically distressed areas by offering specific tax benefits. By boosting local development, increasing tax revenue and creating jobs, the opportunity zone program quickly became a focal point for real estate and community development, although it also faced criticism.

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CU-oxide-2162525060-300x200Critical minerals are the backbone of modern technologies and national security, powering everything from advanced semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries to missile guidance systems and renewable energy infrastructure. As the global economy transitions to more diverse energy technologies, the demand for these essential materials has surged. Despite their vast importance and usefulness, the United States remains heavily dependent on foreign sources—particularly China—that dominate the global supply chain for critical minerals. This reliance threatens supply chain stability, leaving key American industries vulnerable to disruptions, price manipulations and political leverage.

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In DOGE Puts GSA Leases in the Doghouse,  colleagues Matt Carter, Michael R. Rizzo, Andrew J. Weiner, Christian A. Buerger, David L. Miller, Dinesh C. Dharmadasa and Allan C. Van Vliet explain why, even as the Trump administration may be utilizing early exit provisions in the GSA lease cancellations and terminations reported to date, prudent contractors should prepare for other potential tactics to end leases the administration deems unfavorable.

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https://www.gravel2gavel.com/files/2025/01/Seal_of_the_President_of_the_United_States.svg_-300x300.pngLast week, on one of his final days in office, President Biden signed an executive order aimed at boosting the development of energy facilities and data centers for artificial intelligence (AI) technology. Executive Order 14141 directs the secretaries of Defense, Energy and the Interior to lease sites on federal land to private sector companies for the purpose of building data centers and energy generation and transmission facilities. Noting that AI technology has become, and is expected to remain, a “defining technology of our era,” and that both economic and national security risks could arise if the United States falls behind in the race to build AI infrastructure, the Order seeks to reduce regulatory barriers to these projects by speeding the permitting process, and ambitiously seeks to enable construction at these federal sites to commence by January 1, 2026.

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