Extended Producer Responsibility: A State By State Guide

Governor Greg Abbott has ordered the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to immediately halt all environmental permits for data center projects, expanding a statewide regulatory freeze that now encompasses power, water, and environmental approvals. This directive establishes strict operational mandates requiring data centers to fully fund infrastructure costs, report all resource consumption...

Governor Abbott has ordered Texas environmental regulators to halt all data center permit issuance until grid operators complete a comprehensive audit in mid-December 2026. The sweeping directive affects not only grid-connected facilities but also fully islanded data centers relying on behind-the-meter generation, creating uncertainty for developers and their contractual obligations.

On September 21, 2026, Texas Governor Greg Abbott directed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to halt issuance of permits to data centers until the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) completes an audit of impacts on the Texas electric grid and water resources.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has directed state agencies to halt all data center permits until comprehensive audits assess the projects' impacts on electric infrastructure, residential ratepayers, and water resources. The directive requires data centers to fully fund necessary electric infrastructure and comply with enhanced reporting requirements, while the governor signals potential legislative action to codify new protections and phase out certain tax incentives.

On September 30, Edgewell Personal Care Brands LLC was hit with a lawsuit in California superior court concerning its Carefree brand of menstrual liners.

California has enacted seven unprecedented bills targeting data center development, imposing sweeping new requirements for energy reporting, water consumption assessments, labor standards, and electricity rate structures. These laws fundamentally reshape the regulatory landscape for data centers, requiring detailed disclosures at multiple project stages while prohibiting categorical CEQA exemptions and establishing new interconnection rules that shift infrastructure costs directly to developers.

A federal district court has preliminarily enjoined the EPA from reclassifying California's Clean Air Act preemption waiver orders as "rules" subject to the Congressional Review Act. The court found that EPA's reclassification likely violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded the agency's authority, though the order does not prevent Congress from proceeding with pending disapproval resolutions.

This decision is important because it allows a property owner to challenge Corps jurisdiction early in the Section 404 regulatory process

The EPA has released decisions on 34 small refinery exemption petitions from 2025, granting full or partial exemptions that total 1.76 million RINs - significantly more than initially estimated. This discrepancy has prompted the agency to announce a new rulemaking that will reallocate 100 percent of exempted volumes to 2026 and 2027 renewable volume obligations, potentially increasing compliance burdens for nonexempt obligated parties.

A federal court has struck down New York's Climate Change Superfund Act, which sought to recover $75 billion from fossil fuel companies based on historical emissions. The ruling found the Act preempted by the Clean Air Act, marking the first judicial decision on state climate superfund legislation and establishing that EPA's rescission of the endangerment finding does not alter preemption analysis.

Companies that make cellular telephone numbers searchable or publicly viewable online are facing a new wave of putative class actions for statutory damages based on novel theories.

While the pace of new privacy legislation slowed last year, 2025 marked a significant pivot by regulators toward finalizing demanding regulations and starting aggressive enforcement.

The Department of Justice has secured major settlements totaling over $550 million against companies for customs fraud, signaling an aggressive enforcement posture on trade violations. These cases demonstrate that businesses of all sizes face significant civil and criminal liability for misrepresenting imported goods to evade tariffs and duties. Companies must now evaluate their supply chains and compliance programs to avoid becoming the next target of DOJ's Trade Fraud Task Force.

First effective in 2024, the Act bans the sale or distribution of various products that contain intentionally added PFAS chemicals.

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is poised to begin enforcing tougher permit standards for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs)...

Map Public Nuisance Video

The parties in a lawsuit alleging Kellogg Sales Co. misrepresented its cereals as healthy have reached an agreement that would require the company to pay $20 million ...

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. has agreed to pay $6.5 million to settle allegations that it misleadingly marketed its food as free of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

A plaintiff has alleged that Frito-Lay North America Inc. fails to include a mandated front-of-package disclosure that its Cheddar and Sour Cream...

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a consumer update on cannabidiol (CBD) products and other products containing ingredients derived from cannabis.