Republican

Caution: High Voltage – Federal Versus State Authority Concerning the Siting of High Voltage Transmission Lines

Caution: High Voltage – Federal Versus State Authority Concerning the Siting of High Voltage Transmission Lines

Making sure the United States is producing enough energy is a pressing issue as seen throughout the Biden Administration. With the Senate’s passing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, more authority will be delegated to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in approval of electric transmission lines and facilities. 2L staffer, Grace Brock discusses the pros and cons of this act while bringing in issues of eminent domain and administrative law.

State and Federal Budget Cuts to Harm Conservation Districts

State and Federal Budget Cuts to Harm Conservation Districts

On January 16, 2018, the Office of the State Budget Director in Kentucky published the Executive Budget for the 2018–2020 fiscal years. Included in the budget is the elimination of seventy state-funded programs, one of which is Direct Aid to Kentucky’s Soil and Water Conservation Districts (SWCDs). Rowlett says that Direct Aid is necessary to fund district initiatives like technical assistance to landowners with Agricultural Water Quality Plans, funding for Envirothon teams, and other educational endeavors that help fulfill the districts’ conservation mission.

“Wherever there is no consensus that can be achieved, disagreement has to be made clear.”

“Wherever there is no consensus that can be achieved, disagreement has to be made clear.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel recently closed the G20 summit citing the “unfortunate” position the United States was in compared to the other nineteen members of the G20 who remain committed to the Paris climate accord. The Chancellor’s statements were seemingly borne from the intention of ringing the proverbial bell, however, President Trump’s position on climate change, somewhat uncharacteristically, has stood firm since he learned “[t]he concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.”