Advocacy, Rulemaking & Administrative Relief

At all levels of government, regulatory proposals and rulemaking can have a significant effect on the business operations of our clients. The ability to analyze and identify key issues of concern in proposed rules is critical to assisting clients in proactively influencing the “how” and “why” of environmental regulations. Through well-reasoned and articulate legal arguments and alternative proposals to address environmental issues, we assist clients through the regulatory/rulemaking process to address those issues which may otherwise place undue burdens on their business operations.

At the federal level, we have prepared formal comments and responses to information-gathering requests associated with proposed rulemaking directed to our clients. We have participated in U.S. EPA outreach efforts to regulated parties concerning proposed regulation to bring issues of client concern to its attention.

At the state level,  we have participated in stakeholder efforts to work cooperatively with the state personnel to craft regulations that achieve the goals of environmental legislation in a fair and reasonable manner. Our lawyers have also participated in numerous administrative rulemaking proceedings. Applying our extensive litigation experience to the public hearing process, our questioning of agency and expert witnesses has highlighted inconsistencies and deficiencies in the proposed rules that paved the way to amended proposals that more appropriately regulate the area of concern.

There may be times when a company is unable, for technical, economic, or other reasons, to meet the requirements of a rule or standard. We work with our clients to assess the various options to obtain regulatory relief from compliance, including site-specific rulemaking, adjusted standards, and variances.

Recent matters handled by our lawyers include:

• Represented a client before the Illinois Pollution Control Board seeking a Clean Water Act Section 316(a) thermal variance for discharges from three facilities to the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal and the Lower Des Plaines River
• Assisted a circuit board manufacturer in an adjusted standard petition to obtain relief from hazardous waste regulations
• Represented a large steel manufacturer before the Illinois Commerce Commission in a successful challenge of jurisdiction over an internal company-run pipeline
• Represented a metals refinery by modifying their adjusted standard petition to avoid having the client’s recycling process fall within the hazardous waste regulations
• Counselled a company to obtain siting approval for a state-of-the-art biosolids recycling facility at a municipal wastewater treatment plant