Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Monitor – August 11, 2023

State attorneys general increasingly impact businesses in all industries. Our nationally recognized state AG team has been trusted by clients for 20 years to navigate their most complicated state AG investigations and enforcement actions.

State Attorneys General Monitor analyzes regulatory actions by state AGs and other state administrative agencies throughout the nation. Contributors to this newsletter and related blog include attorneys experienced in regulatory enforcement, litigation, and compliance.

Contact our State AG Team at StateAG@troutman.com.

State AG Updates

Five State AGs Write Amicus Letter Concerning Environmental Settlement

By Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Team

California Attorney General Rob Bonta led a coalition of five state attorneys general (AGs) in filing an amicus letter concerning a proposed class action settlement between DuPont, Chemours, and Corteva, and water providers for $1.18 billion. The AGs contend the settlement amount is far too low given the scope of environmental contamination and health impacts caused by Dupont’s decades-long manufacture and sale of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) compounds.

Read more

Nebraska and Iowa AGs Sue Biden Administration’s EPA for Failing to Fulfill Sale of Year-Round E15 Gasoline

By Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Team

Nebraska Attorney General (AG) Mike Hilgers and Iowa AG Brenna Bird joined forces to sue the Biden administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to fulfill the request by Iowa and Nebraska governors to allow the sale of year-round E15 gasoline.

Read more

Capital Markets, Professional Perspective – Proposed NY Digital Asset Framework Imposes Consumer Protection-Focused Measures

By Michael Yaghi, Ketan Bhirud, and Trey Smith

New York Attorney General (AG) Letitia James introduced legislation to regulate businesses engaged in digital asset-related activities “from or within the State of New York.” Titled the “Crypto Regulation, Protection, Transparency, and Oversight Act” (the CRPTO Act or the Act), AG James has called the proposal “the strongest and most comprehensive set of regulations on cryptocurrency in the nation.”

Read more

California AG Petitions State Court for Order to Seize Assets From an Unlicensed Cannabis Dispensary

By Troutman Pepper State Attorneys General Team, Jean Smith-Gonnell, and Agustin Rodriguez

California Attorney General (AG) Rob Bonta is asking the Los Angeles County Superior Court to enter a civil forfeiture order allowing the state to collect unpaid taxes and fees from an unlicensed marijuana business by seizing its assets.

Read more

Director of the Massachusetts Cannabis Regulator Is Departing Amid Agency’s Promulgation of New Cannabis Café Rules

By Agustin Rodriguez and Michael Lafleur

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission’s first and only executive director is supposedly planning to leave the agency, which is in the midst of implementing the state’s new cannabis equity law, enacted in August 2022. This law includes new regulations concerning licensed “marijuana social consumption establishments,” which are more commonly known as cannabis cafés.

Read more

Stephanie Kozol, Senior Government Relations Manager – State Attorneys General, also contributed to this newsletter.

Our Cannabis Practice provides advice on issues related to applicable federal and state law. Marijuana remains an illegal controlled substance under federal law.