June 4, 2023
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of May 29, 2023
State Regulation: Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission Proposes Amendments to Low-Income Usage Reduction Program Regulations ⚡
On Thursday, May 18, 2023, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing amendments to the Low-Income Usage Reduction Program (LIURP) regulations. LIURP regulations apply to natural gas distribution companies and electric distribution companies that are “covered” as per 52 Pa. Code § 58.2 and require them to provide energy conservation services to low-income households in the state. The LIURP regulations were first passed in 1988 and last amended in 1998. In 2016, the PUC published a Secretarial Letter noting that the changing market required revision of the LIURP regulations and requesting comments from interested stakeholders. The Notice “summarizes the stakeholder comments to the 2016 Secretarial Letter, proposes amendments to the existing LIURP regulations, and seeks comments on the proposed amendments.” The Notice will be open for public comment for a period of 45 days upon its publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.
National Energy Policy: Department of Energy Announces $42 Million in Funding for Hydrogen Fuel Projects
On Monday, May 22, 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) posted a bulletin announcing “nearly $42 million in funding for 22 projects in 14 states to advance critical technologies for producing, storing, and deploying clean hydrogen.” According to the DOE’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office, about 95% of hydrogen fuel today is produced from steam reforming of natural gas. The remaining 5% includes other thermal processes, electrolytic processes, biothermal processes, and solar processes. Of the 22 projects selected for funding, 11 focus on the production of hydrogen via the solar-driven photoelectrochemical and solar thermochemical water splitting processes. The other 11 projects are not limited to solar-based processes and consist of 6 which focus on the development and validation of sensor technology for monitoring and measuring hydrogen losses, 2 which focus on materials-based hydrogen storage demonstrations, and 3 which focus on designing high-performing, durable catalysts and “membrane electrode assemblies.”
Pipelines: The Mountain Valley Pipeline Project Receives Approval from the Department of the Interior
On Wednesday, May 24, 2023, the Department of the Interior released a Record of Decision which approved a “right of way and temporary use permit” for the construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline Project located in Virginia and West Virginia. This approval is long awaited after delay in 2018 from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals which found violations in environmental impact studies done by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. Mountain Valley filed an amended application and received approval after implementing additional environmental analysis to comply with relevant laws and policies.
National Energy Policy: House Votes to Overturn EPA Heavy-Duty Engine Pollution Rule
On Tuesday, May 23, 2023, the House of Representatives voted to overturn a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule intended to limit emissions from heavy-duty engines and vehicles, including motor and engine manufacturers. The rule required stricter emission standards and testing. Tuesday’s vote, which passed 221-203, confirmed a resolution previously approved by the Senate that provides for congressional disapproval of the EPA rule. The resolution now goes to the President’s desk for final approval or veto.
Oil & Gas Law & Policy Resources:
Charles Sartain, Climate Litigation Update (May 17, 2023)
Martine Cicconi, Florida Enacts Anti-ESG Legislation – House Bill 3 Explained (May 19, 2023)
John McFarland, Dr. Scott Tinker on the Future of Energy (May 22, 2023)
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Penn State Farmland Energy Legal Podcast: Listen to the latest episode here.
FEDERAL ACTIONS—EXECUTIVE & LEGISLATIVE
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Biden-Harris Administration Announces $150 Million Through Investing in America Agenda for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (May 22, 2023)
DOE Launches New Energy Earthshot to Decarbonize Transportation and Industrial Sectors (May 22, 2023)
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
EPA Releases Annual Air Report, Highlighting Trends through 2022 (May 23, 2023)
FEDERAL EXECUTIVE AGENCIES (Federal Register May 23–May 29, 2023):
Energy Department
88 FR 32765: Notice: “Columbia Gas Transmission, LLC; Notice of Request Under Blanket Authorization and Establishing Intervention and Protest Deadline” (May 22, 2023)
88 FR 32765: Notice: “Revisions to Oil Pipeline Regulations Pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 1992; Notice of Annual Change in the Producer Price Index for Finished Goods” (May 22, 2023)
Environmental Protection Agency
88 FR 32852: Proposed Rule: Comments Close 7/21/23: “Revisions and Confidentiality Determinations for Data Elements Under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule” (May 22, 2023)
88 FR 33240: Proposed Rule: Comments Close 7/24/23: “New Source Performance Standards for Greenhouse Gas Emissions From New, Modified, and Reconstructed Fossil Fuel-Fired Electric Generating Units; Emission Guidelines for Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Existing Fossil Fuel-Fired Electric Generating Units; and Repeal of the Affordable Clean Energy Rule” (May 23, 2023)
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
88 FR 32765: Notice: “Revisions to Oil Pipeline Regulations Pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 1992; Notice of Annual Change in the Producer Price Index for Finished Goods” (May 22, 2023)
Justice Department
88 FR 33648: Notice: “Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean Air Act” (May 24, 2023)
Interior Department
88 FR 33020: Proposed Rule: Comments Close 6/22/23: “Pennsylvania Regulatory Program” (May 23, 2023)
U.S. HOUSE ENERGY AND COMMERCE COMMITTEE
H.R.3439: “To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to select and implement landscape-scale forest restoration projects, to assist communities in increasing their resilience to wildfire, and for other purposes.” Referred to the Subcommittee on Federal Lands. (May 22, 2023)
H.R.3568: “To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to clarify the requisite timeline for making a decision on the approval or disapproval of a State underground injection control program, and for other purposes.” Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. (May 22, 2023)
H.R.3595: “To improve the process for awarding grants under certain programs of the Department of Agriculture to certain counties in which the majority of land is owned or managed by the Federal Government and to other units of local government and Tribal governments in those counties, and for other purposes.” Referred to the Committee on Agriculture. (May 22, 2023)
H.R.3637: “To direct the Federal Trade Commission to promulgate regulations to prohibit an entity from selling, leasing, or offering for sale or lease water rights at an excessive price during certain droughts, and for other purposes.” Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. (May 24, 2023)
U.S. SENATE ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE
S.612: “A bill to reauthorize the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act, and for other purposes.” Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably. (May 17, 2023)
S.736: “A bill to establish the Chiricahua National Park in the State of Arizona as a unit of the National Park System, and for other purposes.” Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably. (May 17, 2023)
S.776: “A bill to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain segments of the Gila River system in the State of New Mexico as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, and for other purposes.” Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably. (May 17, 2023)
S.1540: “A bill to amend the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to provide for circumstances under which reinitiation of consultation is not required under a land and resource management plan or land use plan under those Acts, and for other purposes.” Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably. (May 17, 2023)
S.1719: “A bill to amend the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 to establish emergency fireshed management areas, and for other purposes.” Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (May 18, 2023)
STATE ACTIONS—EXECUTIVE & LEGISLATIVE
PENNSYLVANIA EXECUTIVE AGENCIES (Pa. Bulletin Vol. 53, No. 19 May 13, 2023)
53 Pa.B. 2744: Notices: “Conservation and Natural Resources Advisory Council Public Meeting”
53 Pa.B. 2744: Notices: “Proposed Exchange of Property Between the City of Philadelphia and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources”
53 Pa.B. 2809: Notices: “Draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System General Permit for Discharges from Petroleum Product Contaminated Groundwater Remediation Systems (PAG-05)”
53 Pa.B. 2810: Notices: “Draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System General Permit for Point Source Discharges from the Application of Pesticides (PAG-15)”
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES
Written by:
Mary Johnson, Research Assistant
Josh Narey, Research Assistant
Lonzie Helms, Research Assistant
Jackie Schweichler, Staff Attorney
