"The $1.3 trillion government-wide spending bill released late Wednesday rejects President Trump’s proposal to slash the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) budget by 31 percent."

"A federal judge in San Francisco Wednesday will preside over the nation’s first-ever court hearing on the science of climate change, but don’t expect it to be a “Scopes Trial” for global warming research."

"The EPA has taken at least 15 major actions on air pollution—all to delay, weaken or repeal protections, and all opposed by leading public health groups."

"A coalition of environmental and animal-welfare groups sued on Tuesday to challenge the Trump administration's moves toward allowing the importation of the heads, hides and tusks of African elephants as hunting trophies."

"Congressional leaders hope to have massive omnibus spending legislation on the House floor by Thursday, assuming they can resolve a few dozen outstanding policy fights."

"The Bureau of Land Management disregarded a request by the National Park Service that it hold off leasing 17,000 acres of public land in Utah on Tuesday because of concerns that drilling there could harm Hovenweep National Monument’s views and air, groundwater and sound quality."

"The top Senate Democrat overseeing the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) funding said Monday the EPA isn’t cooperating with a high-profile spending investigation."

"The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday gave the green light to two class-action lawsuits filed by residents of Flint, Michigan who are pursing civil rights claims against local and state officials over lead contamination in the city’s water supply."

"The U.S. Department of Interior on Tuesday will auction off more than 51,000 acres (21,000 hectares) in southeastern Utah for oil and gas development, over objections from conservationists, who say the move threatens sensitive archaeological and wilderness sites."

"A legal battle over the storage of more than 3 million tons of coal ash in Virginia is headed to a federal appeals court in a case closely watched by environmentalists and energy companies."