President Biden Announces Energy Permitting Reforms

On April 30, President Joe Biden President announced a final regulation that will change the federal executive branch’s implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in a way that would speed up federal permitting for energy projects.

As Politico reported, the rule sets deadlines and page limits for the environmental reviews that executive branch agencies conduct for all projects seeking federal permits. The new regulation also will require a single federal agency to lead the review of any particular permit, rather than giving veto power to multiple agencies. “The changes will apply to permits for both clean energy projects — including solar storage and electric vehicle charging — and those involving fossil fuels.” Politico noted. “But some clean energy projects may be eligible for even more accelerated reviews.”

While this news is welcome, some lawmakers in the president’s own party said the changes will not do enough to speed up the development of key energy projects. Indeed, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) vowed to roll back the Biden administration’s regulation through a Congressional Review Act resolution he plans to offer in the U.S. Senate. He and other lawmakers also are working on legislation that would include more robust permitting reforms.

Stay tuned to Connecting the Dots as this story develops.