Legislation + Regulation

  Boston has become the first city in the US to mandate that most large new buildings achieve net-zero carbon emissions from the day they open. This regulation, within amended zoning codes, passed in January 2025, and is considered the most stringent building emissions rule in the United States. The new requirement marks a significant [...]

The Smart Surfaces Coalition, in partnership with the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, has launched an updated Smart Surfaces Policy Tracker, a comprehensive tool designed to help U.S. cities and states track, compare, and implement policies that address extreme urban heat and flooding through innovative surface design strategies. The tool compiles over 1,935 policy [...]

  The Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE) has launched a new Building Performance Standard (BPS) program aimed at improving energy efficiency in existing large commercial buildings across the state. This initiative, established through the passage of House Bill 3409 by the Oregon Legislature in 2023, marks Oregon as the fourth state in the nation to [...]

  A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to immediately reinstate funding previously awarded under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), after President Trump froze these disbursements on his first day back in office. The ruling, delivered by Judge Mary McElroy of the U.S. District Court for [...]

  The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has finalized and published clarifications to the test procedures for General Service Lamps (GSLs), including changes to how tunable white lamps are tested and expanded definitions for ballasts. The effective date of this rule was initially set for February 18, 2025, but was later temporarily delayed to March 21, 2025. [...]

The American Lighting Association (ALA) sent out a good summary of last week’s tariff escalations by the Trump Administration. President Trump is invoking his authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA) to, as the White House puts it, “address the national emergency posed by the large and persistent trade deficit that [...]

  The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced on February 14th that it would postpone the implementation of several appliance energy efficiency standards that the Biden administration had finalized. This pause includes General Service Lamps (GSL), which include a large variety of screw-based lamps and some linear tube lamps. The Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, claimed [...]

  On inauguration day, President Trump issued an executive order to halt disbursements of funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), causing uncertainty for numerous climate and infrastructure projects. This “Unleashing American Energy” order directs federal agencies to pause and review funding processes for these acts. Scope and [...]

  For weeks, court cases across the United States have resulted in several reversals of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) requirement for Reporting Businesses to file Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) to comply with the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). In the latest reversal, on January 24, 2025, FinCEN issued new guidance on the CTA. The guidance [...]