Welcome to Pillsbury’s Regulatory Playbook, where you’ll find news and insights on the regulatory trends that are driving markets and shaping businesses. Here, Pillsbury’s market-leading regulatory group illuminates critical developments at the intersection of law and policy. If you need to know what’s happening, why it’s happening and how to respond, consult the Playbook.
Trending Issues
U.S. Department of Labor Withdraws 2022 Crypto Guidance—What It Means for 401(k) Plan Fiduciaries06.12.2025
On May 28, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor Employee Benefits Security Administration (DOL) issued Compliance Assistance Release No. 2025-01 (the 2025 Release), officially rescinding its 2022 Compliance Assistance Release No. 2022-01 (the 2022 Release), which advised fiduciaries of 401(k) plans to “exercise extreme care” before including cryptocurrencies in the menu of investment alternatives available to participants under 401(k) plans and signaled an intent by the DOL to investigate plans that did so. The rescission represents a meaningful policy shift, effectively returning the DOL to a neutral posture—neither endorsing nor discouraging crypto—more aligned with the deregulatory stance of the Trump administration and consistent with broader trends across federal agencies aimed at encouraging responsible digital asset innovation.
Texas Signals Its Commitment to Leading America’s Nuclear Energy Future Through Industry-Friendly Legislation
06.11.2025
Texas emerged from its 89th legislative session with a sweeping set of laws aimed at cementing the state’s leadership in advanced nuclear energy. Through the passage of HB 14, SB 1535 and SB 1061, lawmakers demonstrated a commitment to developing a robust nuclear ecosystem backed by regulatory reform, significant public investment and a forward-looking workforce strategy. This legislative package signals not only Texas’s confidence in nuclear power as a cornerstone of its future energy mix, but also its intent to create a nationally competitive environment for innovation and growth in the nuclear sector.
06.09.2025
On June 1, 2025, Texas Senate Bill 6 (SB 6), passed both chambers of the Legislature with bipartisan support and was sent to Governor Abbott for signature. Absent a veto by Gov. Abbott, the bill will become effective on September 1, 2025. SB 6 introduces significant changes to how large electricity users interact with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid and marks a notable shift in regulatory policy to address concerns over grid reliability and cost allocations.
Water, Reused: Texas Reshapes Liability and Regulatory Rules on Produced Water, Leaves Ownership Questions Unanswered
06.09.2025
The Texas Legislature passed a series of bills aimed at modernizing the legal and regulatory landscape for the handling and reuse of produced water—a byproduct of oil and gas operations. These developments address permitting, liability and inspection processes, with a focus on clarifying the respective roles and responsibilities among operators and regulators. The following update outlines key enacted and pending measures that are expected to influence compliance obligations, operational planning and strategic decisions related to produced water management across the state. Further, by promoting reuse, the legislation also supports efforts to ease pressure on Texas’s strained water supply, particularly in drought-prone and energy-intensive regions. However, legislation that would have clarified ownership of brine minerals failed to advance, leaving unresolved questions over who owns both brine minerals and produced water—an issue with growing importance as interest increases in extracting critical minerals like lithium from these resources.
Geothermal Energy Gains Steam with Boosts and Clarifications from Texas Legislature
06.05.2025
Geothermal energy is rapidly gaining support in Texas as a viable and cost-efficient clean energy resource with substantial economic development prospects. With the ability to leverage the state’s existing oil and gas workforce and deep subsurface expertise, geothermal presents a strategic opportunity to support energy diversification while creating and sustaining jobs in legacy energy regions. The 2025 Texas legislative session included bipartisan efforts aimed at reducing regulatory barriers and supporting local geothermal development. Several targeted measures progressed, and while broader statewide initiatives—such as the establishment of a Geothermal Energy Council in HB 3240—did not advance, momentum for geothermal development in Texas continues to grow. This Legislative Update outlines key bills and their potential implications.
SCOTUS Holds Intent to Cause Economic Harm Is Not Required for Wire Fraud, Expanding Liability
06.04.2025
On May 22, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Kousisis et al. v. United States, settling a Circuit split as to whether a federal fraud conviction can stand even if the defendant did not intend to cause the victim economic loss. In a decision written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, with Justices Gorsuch, Thomas and Sotomayor authoring separate concurrences, the Court held it can.
SCOTUS Limits Scope of NEPA Reviews, Reinstates Approval of Uinta Basin Railway
06.02.2025
In a highly anticipated decision for project developers and permitting agencies, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the D.C. Circuit’s 2023 decision that had invalidated federal approval of the Uinta Basin Railway. In Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, No. 23-975, ___ U.S. ___ (May 29, 2025), the Supreme Court clarified the limits of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), reaffirming its procedural role and reenforcing the deference owed to agency judgments regarding the scope of environmental reviews.
The Proposed “Big Beautiful Bill” May Disrupt Sports Team Investment Strategy
05.23.2025
The recently proposed “Big, Beautiful Bill” (BBB), currently under preliminary markup in the Senate Finance Committee, includes a suite of tax provisions aimed at deficit reduction, corporate reform and base-broadening. Of particular relevance to the sports investment community is a targeted revision to Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 197, which governs the amortization of intangible assets. The bill, as drafted, would restrict the 15-year amortization treatment for “specified sports franchise intangibles”—an essential feature underpinning the economics of sports team acquisitions. Investors, private equity sponsors and multi-asset portfolio managers engaged in sports M&A should take immediate note.
President Trump’s Nuclear Executive Orders: What Clients Should Know
05.23.2025
Today, President Trump signed four new Executive Orders (the “Orders”)—Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Reforming Nuclear Reactor Testing at the Department of Energy, Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base, and an order focused on Nuclear Energy for National Security—with a goal to quadruple U.S. nuclear power capacity by 2040. The overall goal of the Orders is to “expedite and promote to the fullest possible extent the production and operation of nuclear energy,”, which matches previous statements by Secretary of Energy Chris Wright that “America must lead the commercialization of affordable and abundant nuclear energy.”
Revitalizing Opportunity: How “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill” Aims to Reform and Renew Opportunity Zones
05.21.2025
Ever since President Trump announced that his second administration would champion comprehensive Federal tax legislation, “The One, Big, Beautiful Bill,” there was hope in real estate and other circles that the Bill would extend and restructure the Opportunity Zone program, originally launched in 2017 to spur economic growth in distressed communities through tax-incentivized investment. The ability to reinvest capital gains on a tax-deferred basis into the initial program (OZ 1.0) is scheduled to expire on December 31, 2026. OZ 1.0 created incentives for projects in approximately 8,764 census tracts selected to approximate areas in need of revitalization, and its supporters credit it with facilitating at least $40 billion in investment in those census tracts.
New DOJ Initiative Expands FCA Use to Enforce Civil Rights Compliance and Target DEI Initiatives
05.21.2025
In a memorandum issued by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on May 19, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the creation of the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, a new enforcement effort that uses the federal False Claims Act (FCA) to pursue investigations and prosecutions of recipients of federal funding—including institutions of higher education, research centers and federal contractors—who allegedly falsely certify their compliance with federal civil rights laws. The FCA is known as the government’s “primary weapon against fraud, waste, and abuse,” because FCA violations can yield treble damages plus five-figure penalties for each false claim.
Breaking Down the “Big, Beautiful Bill”: Priorities and Provisions in the Proposed 2025 Federal Income Tax Legislation
05.20.2025
This Pillsbury alert provides an overview of the “Big Beautiful Bill” (BBB) as passed by the House Ways & Means Committee on Sunday, May 18, 2025. The overview breaks the bill into three main sections: Changes Affecting Individuals, Changes Affecting Businesses and Changes Affecting Tax-Exempts and Universities. Please note that the legislative process is fluid, and the provisions as described herein may be changed as the legislation advances toward passage.
DOJ Announces Shift in Approach to Prosecuting Corporate Crime
05.16.2025
On May 12, 2025, the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice issued a Memorandum outlining its new approach to white-collar criminal enforcement under the second Trump administration. Observing that “overbroad and unchecked corporate and white-collar enforcement burdens U.S. business and harms U.S. interests,” the Memorandum represents a notable shift in the Department’s tone.
EDGAR Next Implements Significant System Updates
05.15.2025
Background On September 27, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted changes to the SEC’s Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval (EDGAR) system intended to modernize the EDGAR system by improving security measures, enhancing filers’ ability to manage their EDGAR accounts and more (collectively referred to as EDGAR Next). The new rules and form amendments became effective March 24, 2025, and will:
• amend Regulation S-T Rules 10 and 11, and Form ID; and
847 Awaiting Takeoff: DCSA Issues Guidance on Expanded Scope of FOCI Assessments
05.13.2025
Section 847 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2020 directs the Department of Defense (DoD) to move forward with proposing a new Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) rule that would expand the scope of companies subject to its foreign ownership, control, and influence (FOCI) evaluations. The anticipated DFARS rule would require bidders and subcontractors participating in DoD contracts valued at over $5 million, subject to certain exceptions, to disclose FOCI details during the bid or proposal stage and update those details when changes to their ownership structure that implicate FOCI concerns occur. Per guidance issued by the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA), the rule is expected to be published within the next 12 to 18 months.
The “Big, Beautiful Bill” Starts to Come into Focus: U.S. Ways & Means Committee Releases Proposed 2025 Federal Income Tax Legislation
05.12.2025
On May 9, 2025, the House Ways & Means Committee released its initial draft of President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” The bill will set the stage for extending the tax cuts enacted in 2017 as part of President Trump’s first term. Many of the tax cuts contained in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) reduced federal revenue so substantially that they were enacted with “sunsets”—they were set to expire at the end of 2025 so that the revenue cost could be limited. The Ways & Means version of the big, beautiful bill (with two subsection titles echoing the MAGA credo) is the first look at which provisions Congress and the President have determined to make permanent or otherwise change in the U.S. Tax Code.