UPDATED: Energy bills dominate NJ Senate panel’s May 22 agenda

Here is the agenda for the NJ Senate Environment and Energy Committee meeting at 10 a.m., Thursday, May 22 in Room 10, State House Annex :

A3781 Requires BPU to develop program to promote certain energy businesses in State.

S1043 Requires DEP to perform certain assessments concerning regulation of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

S2862 Requires BPU to develop program to promote certain energy businesses in the State.

S3887 Requires DEP to provide public access for boats to certain State-owned lakes; appropriates $2 million.

S4100 Requires establishment of automated platform to expedite construction code approval of applications to install residential solar energy systems.

S4289 Requires BPU to procure and incentivize transmission-scale energy storage.

S4293 Requires owner or operator of data center to submit water and energy usage report to BPU.

S4307 Requires electric public utilities to develop and apply special tariff for data centers.

S4423 Authorizes BPU to provide site approval for small modular reactors; authorizes operators of small modular reactors to store spent nuclear fuel on-site.

S4424 Establishes geothermal energy pilot program for gas public utilities.

S4425 Establishes “Fleet Conversion Task Force” in DEP.

To see full copy of any bill above:
1. Click here
2. Type bill number in Bill Number(s) block
3. Hit Submit button
4. Click bill number in Bill Search Results

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UPDATED: Energy bills dominate NJ Senate panel’s May 22 agenda Read More »

Trump Lifts Stop Work Order on $5B Empire Wind Project in NY

Visualizations of the Empire Wind offshore wind farm. Image courtesy Equinor

By Mike Schuler, gCaptain

The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has lifted the stop work order on the Empire Wind project, allowing construction activities to resume after a month-long suspension.

The $5 billion Empire Wind 1 project, designed to power 500,000 New York homes by 2027, represents a significant milestone in the U.S. renewable energy sector. The project, which began construction in 2024 and is currently more than 30% complete, faced a temporary setback when BOEM ordered an immediate cessation of activities on April 16, 2025.

Empire Wind also includes a potential second phase with a collective generating capacity of approximately 2.1 gigawatts.

Anders Opedal, President and CEO of Equinor ASA, expressed gratitude to key stakeholders, including President Trump and New York Governor Hochul, whose collaboration proved crucial in resolving the situation. “We appreciate the fact that construction can now resume on Empire Wind, a project which underscores our commitment to deliver energy while supporting local economies and creating jobs,” Opedal stated.

The suspension was part of a broader halt on offshore wind development ordered by President Trump, with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum citing concerns about the previous administration’s approval process.

The decision prompted legal action from 18 states, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, aimed at protecting maritime investments and jobs.

The project’s financial stakes are substantial, with Empire Wind holding a gross book value of approximately USD 2.5 billion as of March 31, 2025, including USD 1.5 billion in project finance term loans. The development also encompasses the redevelopment of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal, set to become the nation’s largest dedicated port facility for offshore wind.

Read the full story here

Trump Lifts Stop Work Order on $5B Empire Wind Project in NY Read More »

Former President Joe Biden Diagnosed With an Aggressive Form of Prostate Cancer

The cancer has metastasized to the bone, according to a statement from Mr. Biden’s personal office.

By Tyler Pager, New York Times, May 18, 2025Updated 4:33 p.m. ET

Former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. was diagnosed Friday with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, his office said in a statement on Sunday.

The diagnosis came after Mr. Biden reported urinary symptoms, which led doctors to find a “small nodule” on his prostate. Mr. Biden’s cancer is “characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone,” the statement said.

Related: Aggressive form of cancer

“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management,” according to the statement from Mr. Biden’s office, which was unsigned. “The president and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”

Mr. Biden, 82, left office in January as the oldest-serving president in American history. Throughout his presidency, Mr. Biden faced questions about his age and his health, which ultimately led him to abandon his re-election campaign

Read the full story here

People hold signs and chant slogans during a protest against the Trump administration, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File) — *People hold signs and chant slogans during a protest against the Trump administration, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in Miami.*

By NICHOLAS RICCARDI, Associated Press

DENVER (AP) — Tucked deep in the thousand-plus pages of the multitrillion-dollar budget bill making its way through the Republican-controlled U.S. House is a paragraph curtailing a court’s greatest tool for forcing the government to obey its rulings: the power to enforce contempt findings.

It’s unclear whether the bill can pass the House in its current form — it failed in a committee vote Friday — whether the U.S. Senate would preserve the contempt provision or whether courts would uphold it. But the fact that GOP lawmakers are including it shows how much those in power in the nation’s capital are thinking about the consequences of defying judges as the battle between the Trump administration and the courts escalates.

Republican President Donald Trump raised the stakes again Friday when he attacked the U.S. Supreme Court for its ruling barring his administration from quickly resuming deportations under an 18th-century wartime law: “THE SUPREME COURT WON’T ALLOW US TO GET CRIMINALS OUT OF OUR COUNTRY!” Trump posted on his social media network, Truth Social.

Read the full story here

Are Trump and the courts headed for a showdown over separation of powers? Read More »

EPA rolls back part of PFAS drinking water standards

The agency will continue regulating PFOA and PFOS in drinking water, but will extend compliance timelines. It has rescinded rules for four other PFAS chemicals.

By Megan Quinn, Senior Reporter, Waste Dive

The U.S. EPA will roll back significant parts of the National Primary Drinking Water Regulation by rescinding four of the six chemicals named in the regulation.

The agency announced on Wednesday it will rescind and “reconsider” regulations for PFHxS, PFNA, PFBS and HFPO-DA, commonly known as GenX. EPA says it plans to keep regulations for two other chemicals in the standard: PFOA and PFOS.

The announcement rolls back major parts of the drinking water rule set under the Biden administration last April, which set legally enforceable limits for the six types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in drinking water. The EPA has said PFAS exposure can cause numerous health problems.

The drinking water rules have become the default standard for treating a range of wastewater categories. The standards are relevant to waste facility operators because of how the rules might affect leachate management and groundwater monitoring efforts, as well as how these facilities interact with wastewater treatment facilities. The regulations also represent business opportunities for waste companies that service industrial clients.

The EPA now plans to extend compliance deadlines for PFOA and PFOS, saying it would give drinking water system operators more time to develop plans for complying with maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for the two chemicals.

The agency is planning a new rulemaking process to propose extending that compliance date from 2029 to 2031. EPA said it may issue the proposed rule sometime this fall and finalize the rule in spring of 2026.

Read the full story here

EPA rolls back part of PFAS drinking water standards Read More »

Washington Gov. Ferguson signs EPR packaging bill into law

Ferguson called it the “biggest overhaul of our recycling system in decades.” Washington’s law, the seventh in the U.S., drew opposition from the waste and recycling industry.

By Megan Quinn, Senior Reporter, Waste Dive

Washington is now the seventh U.S. state with a packaging EPR law.

Gov. Bob Ferguson signed SB 5284 into law on Saturday, the culmination of years of advocacy to get a bill across the finish line. He called it the “biggest overhaul of our recycling system in decades” during the signing.

Now that Washington has adopted the law, the whole West Coast of the U.S. has an EPR for packaging program. California and Oregon have also adopted such laws.

The Recycling Reform Act creates an extended producer responsibility program for most kinds of paper and packaging. It also establishes a statewide recycling collection list and calls for adding curbside recycling for all homes that already have curbside trash service. Ferguson noted at the bill signing that this could add service for hundreds of thousands of households.

It also calls for the state’s Department of Ecology to conduct and submit a statewide recycling needs assessment, due by Dec. 31, 2026, and update it with any new data by Dec. 31, 2027.

Read the full story here

Washington Gov. Ferguson signs EPR packaging bill into law Read More »

UPDATED: Energy bills dominate NJ Senate panel’s May 22 agenda

Trump Lifts Stop Work Order on $5B Empire Wind Project in NY

Former President Joe Biden Diagnosed With an Aggressive Form of Prostate Cancer

The cancer has metastasized to the bone, according to a statement from Mr. Biden’s personal office.

Are Trump and the courts headed for a showdown over separation of powers?

EPA rolls back part of PFAS drinking water standards

The agency will continue regulating PFOA and PFOS in drinking water, but will extend compliance timelines. It has rescinded rules for four other PFAS chemicals.

Washington Gov. Ferguson signs EPR packaging bill into law

Ferguson called it the “biggest overhaul of our recycling system in decades.” Washington’s law, the seventh in the U.S., drew opposition from the waste and recycling industry.

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