The Nickel Report

The 2,000 page Federal Acquisition Regulation (the “FAR”) has guided and dictated federal procurement for more than forty years.  Periodically, the FAR has been updated to make procurement more efficient and simpler. The Trump administration is now undertaking its own effort with the rollout of an executive order entitled “Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement.”  It goes without saying that significant changes to the FAR will impact how federal contractors and their subcontractors do business with the federal government.

The scope of the prohibition of “take” under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA or the Act) – and specifically whether the prohibition includes the incidental (unintentional) take of migratory birds – is an issue that has been hotly debated for years. As we reported previously, the federal circuit courts do not agree on the issue, and the federal government’s position has changed several times in recent years, depending on the political party in control of the Executive Branch. The Trump administration amended the government’s position again on April 11, 2025, when the Acting Solicitor for the US Department of the Interior issued a one-page legal opinion (or “M-Opinion”) repealing opinion M-37065, which was issued during the Biden administration and specified that the MBTA prohibits both intentional and incidental take of migratory birds, and restoring opinion M-37050, which was issued during the first Trump administration and specifies that only intentional take of migratory birds is prohibited.

On April 8, President Donald Trump issued a series of orders and a proclamation (collectively the “orders”) intended to revitalize US coal production and the industrial use of coal, including for power generation. Among them was an Executive Order on “Strengthening the Reliability and Security of the United States Electric Grid”[1]  directing the Secretary of Energy to take a series of steps intended to enhance electric grid reliability and security.

On April 8, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order titled Reinvigorating America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Industry and Amending Executive Order 14241, which builds on the March 20 Executive Order titled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production (Executive Order 14241) and complements two other executive orders issued on April 8 focused on strengthening the US electric grid and protecting American energy from state overreach. The coal order provides for immediate action to remove restrictions on coal leasing, mining, and exporting and outlines initiatives to extend coal-power infrastructure and support coal technologies. This order is part of the administration’s holistic strategy to promote coal production in order to support domestic job creation, provide reliable energy supply for resurgent electricity demand from emerging technologies, lower energy costs, capitalize on vast US coal reserves, and facilitate coal exports. 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) (jointly, “the Agencies”) recently issued guidance addressing implementation of the definition of “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS). The guidance specifically provides direction on the proper implementation of “continuous surface connection” as it relates to adjacent wetlands.

On March 20, the firm lost a beloved colleague, Henry V. Nickel. Henry joined what was then Hunton & Williams in June 1976. An enormously gifted lawyer, Henry became the foundation on which Hunton’s environmental law practice flourished. 

On March 20, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order titled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production identifying immediate actions to boost the production of critical minerals within the United States. This executive order builds on the Unleashing American Energy executive order issued on January 20, 2025, which emphasized, among other things, a priority to establish the United States’ position as the leading producer and processor of non-fuel minerals, including rare earth minerals. This executive order outlines concrete steps to facilitate domestic mineral production and processing as part of a broader strategy to enhance national security, reduce reliance on foreign mineral supplies, reduce regulatory barriers, and promote domestic job creation and industry.

On March 20, 2025, President Donald J. Trump issued an Executive Order calling for immediate measures to increase American mineral production. The order outlines several initiatives to streamline permitting processes and prioritize domestic mineral production projects.

The Trump Administration is initiating major changes to reduce NEPA burdens, including an interim final rule to repeal the longstanding White House Council for Environmental Quality (CEQ) NEPA regulations and CEQ guidance directing federal agencies to update their agency-specific NEPA regulations and procedures to prioritize efficiency and certainty. These actions implement directives from the President’s Executive Order (EO) 14154, Unleashing American Energy, to expedite and simplify the federal permitting process to unleash energy dominance through efficient federal permitting.  These changes may lead to more focused reviews and help accelerate federal permitting, although there is likely to be uncertainty in the implementation of NEPA in the near term as agencies work to update their regulations and procedures.

As of early 2025, the landscape of climate disclosure requirements in the United States is shifting. Unsurprisingly, the Trump Administration has signaled its intent to roll back the controversial federal climate disclosure rule promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) last year. Meanwhile, implementation of California’s suite of climate disclosure laws is moving forward, and at least two other states are considering copy-cat legislation. As companies operating in the United States continue to prepare for compliance at the state level, they should consider these developments alongside potential changes to international and voluntary reporting standards and should work to implement corporate processes that ensure consistency and accuracy in reporting across all relevant frameworks.