Green Building Law Update

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Tag Archives: Kaplow

EPA’s Reconsideration of the GHG Endangerment Finding

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Codes and Regulations, GHG, greenhouse gas
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to reverse its 2009 “Endangerment Finding,” a regulatory determination that greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles, buildings, power plants, and other sources “endanger public health and welfare.” That endangerment pronouncement, made under Section 202(a) of the Clean Air Act, created the legal justification for many of the sweeping … Continue Reading

Stablecoin: The GENIUS Act Ushers in a New Era including Green Building Finance

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Federal, Green Building, LEED, Sustainability
On July 18, 2025, the President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, signed into law the much anticipated Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for U.S. Stablecoins Act, that is the GENIUS Act, a sweeping piece of legislation that provides a legal framework for U.S. dollar backed stablecoins. While the bill has been touted as … Continue Reading

Mold in the John Hanson House: Court Preserves Government Immunity at the Expense of Human Health

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Local Government, State
Earlier this month, the Maryland Appellate Court issued a controversial ruling in Candace McCarthy v. Board of Commissioners for Frederick County, Maryland, holding that Frederick County is immune from a negligence claim stemming from mold exposure in the historic John Hanson House. The decision, issued on the same day Maryland’s new mold exposure law took … Continue Reading

Maryland Expands Bat Protections: New Law Shifts Approach to Biodiversity

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental, Federal, State
Biodiversity degradation is an existential crisis affecting planetary and human health. Since the enactment of the federal Endangered Species Act in 1973, populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, and fish have dropped a shocking 68%. As scientists and policymakers grapple with addressing the rapid and widespread decline in species, states like Maryland are exploring regulatory strategies … Continue Reading

All Electric Future Faces Legal Threat After Supreme Court Ruling

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Codes and Regulations, Energy
In a pivotal environmental case with wide reaching implications, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last Friday that a group of fuel producers have Article III standing to challenge the EPA’s approval of a waiver under the Clean Air Act permitting California regulations (.. adopted in 17 states) requiring automakers to manufacture more electric vehicles and … Continue Reading

Congress Blocks California’s Gasoline Car Ban: A Legal and Policy Analysis

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Codes and Regulations, Federal
The Senate has approved three Congressional Review Act resolutions initiated in the House of Representatives that overturn Environmental Protection Agency waivers, which had effectively imposed a de facto ban on the future sale of gasoline powered cars in California and 17 states, as well as Washington, DC. Congressional disapproval of California’s electric vehicle mandates is … Continue Reading

Court Indefinitely Pauses SEC Climate Rule Litigation

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Federal, GHG, greenhouse gas
In a striking development with far reaching implications, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has granted the Motion to Hold Case in Abeyance in the consolidated litigation Iowa v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the lead challenge to the SEC’s 2024 climate disclosure rules. The court’s April 24, 2025, order halts further … Continue Reading

Maryland is About to Regulate Mold: But is the Cart Before the Horse?

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental, State
In a sweeping act moving into a new regulatory space, “where no [hu]man has gone before,” aimed at addressing indoor mold, the Maryland General Assembly passed Senate Bill 856 during the just concluded 2025 legislative session. This legislation, not yet signed by the governor, sets Maryland on a path to becoming maybe the only state … Continue Reading

BEPS Redux: The Most Far Reaching Environmental Legislation of the 2025 Maryland General Assembly

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, GHG, greenhouse gas, State
After this was posted, on May 20, 2025, House Bill 49 became law without the Governor’s signature. This may be the first instance in modern times that a Maryland governor did not sign an enacted bill introduced at the request of that governor. There is little doubt that House Bill 49, enacted on the final … Continue Reading

President Trump’s Bold Step to Rein in State Overreach in Climate Change

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Federal, GHG, greenhouse gas
On April 8, 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued a powerful and consequential Executive Order with the innocuous sounding title, “Protecting American Energy from State Overreach.” The impact of that Executive Order will be far broader than the title belies when it targets “burdensome and ideologically motivated ‘climate change’ or energy policies” .. of several … Continue Reading

Mandatory GHG Disclosures in Maryland Real Estate Contracts

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, GHG, greenhouse gas, State
Maryland law now requires specified greenhouse gas emissions disclosures and exchange of performance data in a contract of sale for buildings subject to the state’s Building Energy Performance Standards. Failure to comply with the regulation can have significant financial and legal consequences. Maryland has quietly taken a dramatic regulatory leap, promulgating what is one of … Continue Reading

States Challenge Validity of New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Codes and Regulations, GHG
The recent enactment of the Climate Change Superfund Act in New York has set the stage for a significant legal battle over the scope of state authority to impose financial responsibility for purported climate related damages. The outcome of this litigation could have far reaching effects, influencing not only New York but the entire energy … Continue Reading
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