EXCLUSIVE: It’s a big week for permitting reform proposals – and it just got bigger.
Sens. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming and Ted Budd of North Carolina are out with a new bill to streamline the federal permitting process, with a method called “permit-by-rule.” The bill, dubbed the Full Responsibility and Expedited Enforcement Act (FREE) Act, would require each agency to evaluate its permitting system and consider replacing it with a system that would need a pre-established “checklist” of criteria to obtain a permit. The approach allows for “automatic permit approval” unless the agency identifies that an applicant has not made proper certifications within a specific time period.
Why this is important: The proposal comes as industry players call for a major overhaul of federal permitting, with projects often held up for years by legal challenges and a complicated approval process.
Wait, wasn’t there another permitting proposal released? Yes! Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee leaders Joe Manchin and John Barrasso unveiled their proposal this week, with the measure aiming to streamline the approval process for both fossil fuel and transmission projects.
What does the Lummis-Budd proposal do? The bill would require agencies to evaluate their permitting system and report back to Congress with a list of permits, requirements, and review systems, and would require an assessment of whether permit-by-rule could replace the current methods. Agencies would have to establish a permit-by-rule application within a year — and allow for applications to be granted if they meet all requirements and are not contested within 30 days. Agencies may audit for compliance if requirements are not met. The agencies would also be required to submit to Congress a report on the progress of transitioning to a permit-by-rule system.
The aim of the bill is to ensure a faster approval process — reducing wait times from years to just 30 days.
“In our states, we’re seeing anywhere from seven to 20 years consumed by permitting processes,” Lummis told the Washington Examiner. “And if you don’t have enough capital to last the permitting process out, we’re losing opportunities to produce our own rare earth minerals and other important commodities.”
But does it bypass NEPA? Lummis said the permit-by-rule system would not bypass the National Environmental Policy Act but rather cover many NEPA requirements through the agency checklists. She said it would be a “much more abbreviated process.”
And at least one former agency official backs the bill: Former Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt, who served under the Trump administration.
“This idea has the greatest potential to move the ball forward in a realistic way, in a very positive direction, in a way that can be supported by all constituencies,” he told the Washington Examiner. Read more on that here.
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WHAT PENNSYLVANIA SENATORS ARE SAYING ABOUT HARRIS AND FRACKING: As Vice President Kamala Harris rolls out her campaign, she’s already facing criticism from Republicans on her environmental record. And some Senate Democrats are avoiding talking about the topic all together.
Sen. Bob Casey, who’s up for reelection this year against GOP challenger Dave McCormick, didn’t directly answer if he had concerns regarding Harris’s call to ban fracking while she was running for president in 2019.
“Look, I’ve got an important race in Pennsylvania, and that’s the race I’ve got to earn the vote in,” he told the Washington Examiner. “Her campaign just began, she’ll have more time to talk about issues as her campaign rolls out.”
Sen. John Fetterman – who switched his positions on fracking when he began campaigning for Senate – chose to instead criticize former President Donald Trump.
“I would be concerned if she was accused and convicted of banging a porn star and bribing. I’d be concerned if she was a convicted felon,” he said.
When asked if her past comments could hurt her chances of winning Pennsylvania – a huge fracking swing-state critical to winning the presidential election – he responded: “I’m not talking about the whole fracking thing. Everyone tries to turn that into an issue, but that’s not gonna be a definitive topic about the election.”
Keep in mind: According to Pennsylvania’s 2023 energy and employment report, the state had 273,364 energy jobs statewide, representing 3.4% of all U.S. energy jobs. Of those energy jobs, more than 48,000 were in fuels – approximately 16,000 in oil and other petroleum, and roughly 13,600 in natural gas.
Also: In 2018, Fetterman told a progressive group that he didn’t support fracking, “and I never have” – later noting a pledge he pledged to not receive money from fossil fuels. During a 2022 debate with NewsNation against Mehmet Oz, Fetterman stated that he’s “always supported fracking, and I’ve always believed that independence with our energy is critical and we can’t be held ransom to somebody like Russia.” Fetterman went on to win a tight race against Oz, winning by 4.9 percentage points.
WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING … The House passed a partisan appropriation bill Wednesday for the Interior Department, the Environmental Protection Agency, and other related agencies. The measure, which passed largely on party lines 210 to 205 after being in question throughout the day, would impose a 20% cut to the EPA and includes several conservative provisions that are likely to doom it in the Senate.
Breaking down the vote: Rep. Vicente Gonzalez was the sole Democrat to vote for the bill, while five Republicans voted against their party: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Thomas Massie, Tom McClintock, Marc Molinaro, and David Schweikert.
What’s in it: The fiscal 2025 spending bill proposes $38.5 billion in discretionary funding, $72 million below fiscal 2024 funding levels, and includes steep cuts to various agencies. The measure would roll back a number of Biden administration regulatory efforts, such as the Department of Energy’s fuel economy standards and its rules curtailing emissions from power plants, as well as the EPA’s “Good Neighbor” rule regulating industry emissions that affect downwind states.
Rider alert: A notable rider in the measure would require an issuance of a new five-year offshore oil and gas lease plan, following criticism that the Biden administration’s plan would offer the lowest number of offshore lease sales in history.
Why this is important: This marks the fifth appropriations bill to pass the House floor – but don’t expect anymore to pass before the August recess. House lawmakers have taken their final vote Thursday, with some of them on planes at the time of writing.
And the other set of appropriations bills are going to be harder to pass. The House’s Energy and Water bill was pulled earlier this week due to its expected failure. More on that here.
ANOTHER HYDROGEN HUB IN THE BOOKS: The Department of Energy launched its second hydrogen hub on Wednesday, granting the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association up to $1 billion in funds to help plan and permit the project.
The details: The project will move into Phase 1 award status – meaning it will receive an initial amount between $27.5 million and $1 billion in federal funding, stemming from the bipartisan infrastructure law. Phase 1 funds will encompass initial planning, permitting, and analysis to ensure the project is “technically and financially viable,” while considering input from local stakeholders, according to a press release from the group.
The project is expected to spread across Washington, Oregon, and Montana, with the aim of creating clean hydrogen.
“Mitigating climate change requires enormous effort and prioritization of resources. It takes a multi-state approach to get things done, like the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub,” Democratic Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said in a written statement. “Today’s announcement marks an exciting step forward in reaching our collective goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ensure a clean energy future.”
Who was the first? The California hub, otherwise known as ARCHES, was the first hub to launch earlier this month. More on that here.
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