Energy & Sustainability

ML Strategies and Mintz continue to engage with key decision makers on various energy and sustainability matters before the Congress and Administration. Federal efforts on these issues have continued apace as part of and separately from the federal response to the coronavirus pandemic.

While Congress and the Administration spent much of May working to address the economic, social, and public health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was still significant activity on energy and sustainability-related matters.

Energy & Sustainability Washington Updates — May 2020

With the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic over the past month as a major public health and economic crisis, the primary focus on Capitol Hill has been on passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Stimulus (CARES) Act, which was signed into law by President Trump on March 27. However, there were other developments on energy and sustainability policy on Capitol Hill and in the Administration.

Read the latest energy policy updates coming out of the Capitol, including updates on the president’s 2020 fiscal year budget request, new energy legislation, and the recent State of the Union Address.

Read about the House Democrats’ $760 billion infrastructure proposal as well as the CLEAN Future Act and other new energy legislation.

Read about new energy legislation in Congress, the extension of various federal energy tax provisions, and the swearing in of the new Secretary of Energy.

Congress returns to Washington the week of December 2 for a short work period of two weeks, although additional legislative days may be added to the calendar as the House and Senate work to conclude several matters before the end of the year. Items on the agenda include Fiscal Year 2020 appropriations, the annual National Defense Authorization Act, and a potential year-end omnibus legislative package that would include various bills.

November opens on Capitol Hill with the Senate in session the first week while the House is in a district work period. Both chambers are in session the weeks of November 11 and November 18, before breaking for the week of Thanksgiving. There are only 16 remaining legislative days in the year where both the House and Senate will be in session at the same time.

Congress returned from the annual August recess on September 9 for a three-week work period before returning home for a district work period the first two weeks of October.

Wind is blowing up in the Commonwealth! A report from Environment Massachusetts shows that offshore wind could help power the state’s electricity needs 19 times over – and major generators are already working to make it happen.

With the end of the 2017-2018 legislative cycle fast approaching, Beacon Hill’s agenda for the coming months has begun to take shape. All major policymaking will need to be concluded by the end of formal sessions on July 31, and lawmakers have a long to-do list they hope to complete before that date.

State-by-state legalization of the medical and recreational use of marijuana is creating a new industry in the U.S. that has the potential to rival our largest businesses. However, the growth of this new industry comes at a cost.

Massachusetts lawmakers have returned from summer recess and are preparing to tackle a robust legislative agenda this fall. Legislators will meet formally through the third Wednesday in November, at which point formal sessions will end until 2018.

After closing the book on the formal sessions in July, Massachusetts lawmakers have turned their attention to the November election. The Senate and House of Representatives convene in informal sessions for the remainder of the year and no controversial legislative matters are expected to pass during this time.

Late Sunday night, the Massachusetts Legislature passed a compromise energy bill that will significantly increase electricity produced by offshore wind, hydropower and other renewable energy sources.