EPA and HHS Signal a Federal Shift on Microplastics, by Sarah J. Morath
On April 2, 2026 the EPA announced that microplastics will be listed as a priority contaminant group in its draft Sixth Contaminant Candidate List under the Safe Drinking Water Act, while HHS unveiled a $144 million ARPA‑H program (STOMP) to develop tools for measuring and removing micro‑ and nanoplastics in the human body. The coordinated moves mark the first federal acknowledgment of microplastics as a public‑health concern, though they stop short of imposing direct regulations. The actions were driven by mounting state legislation, a coalition of governors’ petition, and emerging product‑liability litigation. A 60‑day public comment period on the draft list now opens.
The Trump Administration’s Attempts to Ban Gender Affirming Care for Minors Are Illegal, by Sean M. McBride and Alexander Chen
On Dec. 18, 2025 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a proposed rule that would make gender‑affirming care for minors a condition of participation in Medicare and Medicaid. If finalized, hospitals that continue offering such care could...
An Endangered Species Act Exemption Reveals Distrust of Process, Congress, and Courts, by Erika B. Kranz and Andrew C. Mergen
On March 31, 2026 the Endangered Species Committee—known as the “God Squad”—met for 15 minutes and granted a national‑security exemption allowing oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico despite a NOAA finding that the activities threatened the endangered...
Ad Law Reading Room: “Revisiting Presidential Reorganization,” By Maria Ponomarenko
Maria Ponomarenko’s forthcoming article in the George Washington Law Review revisits the half‑century history of presidential reorganization authority, a statutory power that allowed presidents to reshape the federal bureaucracy from 1939 to 1984. The piece analyzes 115 reorganization plans, explains...
ACUS Update: Seeking Consultants for Six New Projects
The Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) announced on April 23, 2026 that it is accepting consultant proposals for six new projects aimed at improving federal administrative processes. Proposals are due by June 12, 2026, and the consulting fee...
Loper Bright and the Future of the Democratic Coalition, by Gregory A. Elinson
The Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision abolished Chevron deference, sparking alarm among pro‑regulatory Democrats. In response, Senate leaders introduced the Stop Corporate Capture Act to restore the two‑step framework in the Administrative Procedure Act. The article traces the historical ebb...
The 14th Amendment Adopted Birthright Citizenship, by Ediberto Roman
The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments in Trump v. Barbara, a case that asks whether the President can end birthright citizenship through an executive order. Conservative scholars argue the 14th Amendment’s “subject to the jurisdiction” language limits citizenship...
Doomsday Predictions About Jarkesy Just Don’t Add Up by Mitchell Scacchi
The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling in *SEC v. Jarkesy* reaffirmed that defendants in agency‑initiated fraud actions are entitled to a jury trial in an Article‑III court. The decision targets only the small slice of cases involving private rights—roughly 1‑2%...
D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed: A Post-Loper Bright Do-Over
The D.C. Circuit issued eight opinions, highlighted by two high‑profile rulings. It terminated a district‑court criminal contempt inquiry into the government’s transfer of detainees to Salvadoran custody under the Alien Enemies Act. The court also vacated and remanded preliminary injunctions...
D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed: Permitting Authority
The D.C. Circuit struck down the EPA’s decision to let Florida assume Clean Water Act permitting authority after finding the Fish and Wildlife Service’s exemption of Endangered Species Act liability arbitrary and capricious. The court also vacated the Service’s no‑jeopardy...
Ad Law Reading Room: “Protecting Perkins: Removal, Supervision, and Article II,” By Amy Wildermuth and Peyton Baker
Wildermuth and Baker’s new article revisits the 1886 *United States v. Perkins* decision, arguing that Congress can lawfully restrict removal of inferior officers when their appointments are vested in department heads. The authors trace Perkins’ doctrinal lineage through landmark cases...
Seeking Proportionality in Administrative Law
The George Washington Law Review published a foreword urging proportionality as a guiding principle for administrative law. The author argues that Congress, agencies, and courts should calibrate their involvement based on the significance of regulatory actions. Recent Supreme Court decisions,...
New ABA Book: Leading Cases in Administrative Law
The American Bar Association’s Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice has released *Leading Cases in Administrative Law*, edited by Matt Wiener after the late Anna Shavers’ passing. The volume features 35 concise chapters, each dissecting a landmark judicial decision,...
Registration Open: 2026 ABA Spring Administrative Law Conference, May 7-8, 2026, Washington DC
The American Bar Association’s Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice Section is opening registration for its 2026 Spring Conference in Washington, D.C., scheduled for May 7‑8. The two‑day event features hot‑topic CLE sessions on May 8, including panels on post‑Loper Bright reforms, Trump‑era...
Save the Date: 4/29 @ 12:30pm EDT–Webinar in Celebration of the Publication of the 3rd Edition of the Comparative Administrative...
The Edward Elgar 3rd edition of the Comparative Administrative Law Handbook, subtitled “New Voices, New Perspectives,” will be celebrated with a live webinar on April 29, 2024, from 12:30‑2:00 pm EDT. Yale’s Susan Rose‑Ackerman will open the session, followed by co‑editors Megan Pfiffer, Mariana Mota Prado, and Blake Emerson...
Fifth Circuit Review – Reviewed: Old Causes of Action and Growing Fissures in the Right
The Fifth Circuit vacated the FTC’s cease‑and‑desist order that barred Intuit from marketing TurboTax products as free, ruling the agency’s internal adjudication violated the separation of powers. The court relied on the Supreme Court’s *SEC v. Jarkesy* decision, characterizing deceptive‑advertising...
Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 Isn’t for Trade Deficits, by Christine Abely
On February 20, the Trump administration announced temporary import tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, a provision intended to address fundamental balance‑of‑payments crises. The article explains that Section 122 creates a mandatory presidential duty to impose a surcharge...
The Civil Service After the Demise of Humphrey’s Executor
A draft paper titled “Article II and the Civil Service,” soon to appear in the Virginia Law Review, examines how recent Supreme Court trends threaten the traditional insulation of the federal bureaucracy. The authors argue that a unitary‑executive view, a...
The Law of For Cause Removal by Jane Manners and Lev Menand
The Supreme Court is set to decide Trump v. Cook, a case that tests the meaning of “for cause” removal after President Trump attempted to oust Fed Governor Lisa Cook. Jane Manners and Lev Menand’s new paper traces the nineteenth‑century...
The Trouble with Policing Adjudicatory Rulemaking, by Tascha Shahriari-Parsa
The Sixth Circuit ruled in Brown‑Forman Corp. v. NLRB that the National Labor Relations Board must adopt new remedial bargaining standards through notice‑and‑comment rulemaking, not adjudication. The court held the Board’s Cemex‑derived standard was invalid because it was not motivated...
Only One-Third of Proposed Regulatory Obligations Survive to the Final Rule, by Andrew Leahey
A new study of Federal Register rulemaking shows that only about one‑third of proposed regulatory obligations survive unchanged into final rules. Across 954 paired proposals, 32% of obligations persist, while the majority are removed or rewritten, and final rules introduce...
D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed: A Brief Recap of Orders
The D.C. Circuit issued two notable orders last week. In Miot v. Trump, the panel rejected the government’s request to stay the termination of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian nationals, voting 2‑1 and finding the administration had not demonstrated irreparable...
Can We Legally Trade on Anything? By Oren Stern
Prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket let users trade on speculative events, from alien confirmations to geopolitical outcomes. While the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) oversees these platforms under the Commodity Exchange Act, the law explicitly bans contracts tied to...
The Change-in-Position Doctrine After Centro De Trabajadores (D.C. Cir.)
The D.C. Circuit’s opinion in *Centro de Trabajadores Unidos v. Bessent* refines the change‑in‑position doctrine after *Loper Bright*. The panel affirmed the denial of a preliminary injunction against an IRS‑ICE memorandum and held that when a statute unambiguously backs an...
Ad Law Reading Room: “Vacatur Within the Appellate Model of Judicial Review,” By Emily Bremer
Emily Bremer’s forthcoming Yale Law Journal article reinterprets vacatur under the Administrative Procedure Act as an appellate determination rather than an equitable remedy. She argues that the APA’s “set aside” language was intended to fit within the statute’s broader appellate...
D. C. Circuit Review: Reviewed – Two Run-Of the Mill Cases and a Blockbuster en Banc Hearing
The D.C. Circuit affirmed that the IRS may disclose a taxpayer’s address to ICE under 26 U.S.C. §6103(i)(2) and ruled the IRS‑DHS memorandum of understanding a non‑binding policy statement. In a separate opinion, the court held that the FAA must independently review...
ACUS Adopts Four New Recommendations at 84th Plenary Session
The Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) adopted four new recommendations at its 84th plenary session. The recommendations provide best‑practice guidance on obtaining government records for agency proceedings, managing temporary rules, organizing adjudication offices, and collaborating with state, tribal,...
Vesting Clause Asymmetry in Justice Thomas’s Learning Resources Dissent
Justice Thomas’s solo dissent in *Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump* argues that Congress’s legislative power is limited to a narrow “core” defined by the Fifth Amendment’s due‑process clause, while the remaining Article I powers are essentially presidential prerogatives. He contends that...
Administrative Law SSRN Reading List, January 2026 Edition
The Yale Journal on Regulation posted its January 2026 Administrative Law SSRN Reading List, highlighting the ten most‑downloaded recent papers from the SSRN U.S. Administrative Law eJournal. The list, compiled by editor Bill Funk with research assistant Drake Marsaly, features works...
APA Vacatur and the Complete-Relief Principle
The Supreme Court’s decision in *Trump v. CASA, Inc.* clarifies that the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) does not categorically ban vacatur, but permits it when it is the only way to provide complete relief, especially for unregulated third parties. Justice...
ABA Administrative Law Section Seeks Nominations
The ABA Administrative Law Section announced that four council member positions will become vacant beginning August 2026. Candidates must already be Section members, and those who join now will qualify for the 2027 nomination cycle. Council members serve three-year terms,...
Are Senior Executive Service Officials Officers?
In early 2025 the Trump Administration, via the Justice Department, asserted that every member of the Senior Executive Service (SES) should be treated as an "inferior officer" under the Appointments Clause. The claim challenges the long‑standing view of SES positions...
Inconsistencies and Downstream Effects in the Court’s Approaches to Slaughter and Cook, by Graham Steele
The Supreme Court is poised to decide *Trump v. Slaughter* and *Trump v. Cook*, two cases that pit the Court’s Fed‑specific removal protection against a broader challenge to agency independence. In *Cook*, the Court upheld the Federal Reserve’s unique at‑will...
D.C. Circuit Review – Reviewed: Retroactivity
The D.C. Circuit upheld FERC’s 2024 decision allowing PJM to exclude energy‑efficiency resources from future capacity auctions, finding the rule forward‑looking rather than retroactive. A dissent warned that the change undermines reliance interests for providers like Affirmed Energy. In a...
Ad Law Reading Room: “Administrative Decentralization,” By David Fontana
David Fontana’s new article examines the entrenched concentration of senior federal officials in the Washington metropolitan area and how administrative law both empowers and restricts officials located elsewhere. He outlines the historical legitimacy challenges of a centralized bureaucracy and evaluates...
Deposing the Sorcerer’s Apprentice
President Trump created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and installed Elon Musk as its temporary head. Musk announced that his team dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) over a weekend, prompting a lawsuit alleging violations of the...