Insight and Information for the Environmental & Natural Resource Industry
UPDATE:
On Wednesday, August 20, 2025, Plaintiffs filed a Notice of Appeal to the Ninth Circuit challenging the District Court’s denial of their motion for a preliminary injunction. Along with their appeal, Plaintiffs filed a Motion for Injunction Pending Appeal under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 62(d) and Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 8(a)(1)(C). Plaintiffs…
SB-1281 was amended in the Assembly Committee on Appropriations on August 4, 2014. A scheduled hearing on August 6 was postponed and held on suspense under Joint Rule 62(a). As of this writing, a hearing has not yet been rescheduled.
The following provides a snapshot of the proposed text of SB-1281:
…
Yesterday, Senate Bill 1132 failed in the Senate. In a 18-16 vote, SB 1132 fell three votes short of the necessary majority. The bill was introduced by Senators Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) and Mark Leno on February 20, 2014, as reported here.
Through amendments to Public Resources Code (“PRC”) §§ 3157, 3160, 3161…
Last Friday, May 23, 2014, Senate Bill 1017, the Oil Severance Tax Law, failed to pass through the Senate Appropriations Committee. As a result, the bill is effectively dead for the year. SB 1017 was introduced by Senator Evans on February 14, 2014 and passed the Education Committee on April 24, 2014, as reported…
California has two more laws in place to help facilitate development of renewable energy projects after Governor Brown signed Senate Bill 267 and Senate Bill 618 over the weekend.
SB 267 modifies the existing requirements to prepare a water supply assessment for projects that meet certain size thresholds. Under the new law, a photovoltaic or…
Just hours after the California Assembly voted to pass the remaining bill on hydraulic fracturing, SB 4, the California Senate voted to concur with the Assembly amendments. The next stop for the bill is the Governor’s desk. Governor Brown’s administration had previously indicated concern regarding the broad scope of the bill, which was amended in the Assembly to include other well stimulation activities including acid treatment. If the Governor vetos the bill, it can be overriden by a two-thirds vote in both houses, which is a strong possibility given the breakdown of the votes cast to pass the bill.
Continue Reading California Legislature Passes Fracking Bill
Today the California Assembly passed the controversial bill regulating hydraulic fracturing, SB 4. The bill has been criticized by both industry groups and environmental organizations. Industry has argued that the bill is overbroad for including other types of well stimulation techniques, including acid well treatments, and creating a permitting scheme that subjects each decision to stimulate a new well to the California Environmental Quality Act. On the other end of the spectrum, the Center for Biological Diversity claims that only a moratorium on fracking would adequately protect the public and the environment.
Continue Reading California Assembly Passes Fracking Bill
At the end of last week, the Assembly Committee on Appropriations advanced the remaining bill regarding hydraulic fracturing, SB 4, to the Assembly Floor. After delaying the first scheduled vote on the bill, Appropriations advanced the bill without amendment. Since advancing to the floor, SB 4 has been amended to require the development of a reporting website and groundwater modeling criteria.
Continue Reading Assembly Committee Advances Fracking Bill to the Floor
The Assembly Committee on Appropriations failed to reach a decision at yesterday’s hearing on SB 4 – the lone surviving bill relating to hydraulic fracturing in the California Legislature. Appropriations delayed a vote on the newly amended SB 4 for another two weeks after hearing extensive testimony on the bill. At the hearing, representatives on both sides of the issue rejected the bill. Industry representatives argued that the bill is too broad for regulating acid injection in addition to fracking. Meanwhile, environmental groups asserted that the bill is too lenient on fracking fluid disclosure requirements.
Continue Reading Still No Agreement on Remaining Fracking Bill
At a conference in Los Angeles at the end of July, the chair of the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB), Felicia Marcus, noted that the Department of Conservation’s Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR) is delaying the release of its draft regulations of hydraulic fracturing until after the state’s legislative session. Marcus indicated that DOGGR is waiting to see whether the legislature will pass the remaining bill to regulate fracking, Senator Pavley’s SB 4.
Continue Reading DOGGR Delays Release of Draft Fracking Rules Pending Possible Instruction from Lawmakers
