Press Release - House Natural Resources Permitting Proposal will Let America Build

Washington, DC – Tuesday, September 10, 2024 – U.S. Rep. Bruce Westerman’s (R-AR) proposal to amend the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) will be discussed at a legislative hearing in the House Committee on Natural Resources tomorrow. The legislation, which includes improvements to judicial review, will modernize the energy permitting system to meet increasing energy demand and maintain American energy leadership.

ClearPath Action supports this proposal.

“We are another big step closer to modernizing the federal energy permitting system in order to help meet dramatically increasing energy demand and lower emissions in the United States,” said Jeremy Harrell, CEO of ClearPath Action. “The House Committee on Natural Resources has developed multiple, comprehensive proposals that complement the Senate’s proposal, can attract bipartisan support, and will start letting America build more clean energy.”

This House Natural Resources Committee legislation addresses a handful of permitting problems for technologies, including natural gas, critical minerals, renewables, and enabling infrastructure like pipelines and transmission. This bill rectifies attempts by the Biden-Harris Administration to undermine key permitting provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act. It also adds deadlines for litigation over federal permits to boost certainty for project developers.

“Today, you can get a college degree faster than it takes to get a permit to develop new clean energy resources — the process is too long and simply has to change. Pairing this bill with the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 from U.S. Sens. John Barrasso (R-WY) and Joe Manchin (I-WV) will put common-sense reforms to bring our permitting system up to date and further the United States as a global leader in clean energy production,” added Harrell.

The Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee recently passed the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024 with strong bipartisan support. Analysis conducted by ThirdWay, Resources for the Future, RMI, and Princeton University shows that the bill could significantly lower carbon dioxide emissions.

The House Natural Resources proposal will:

  • Shorten litigation timelines by establishing a 120-day statute of limitations after final agency action on a project.
  • Require challengers to have participated in the NEPA review process and for courts to expedite review within 180 days.
  • Limit court injunctions to delay projects only to instances where environmental harm would occur.
  • Allow agencies to adopt existing categorical exclusions enacted by Congress, rectifying guidance issued by the White House Council on Environmental Quality that excluded these types of categorical exclusions under the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
  • Limit agency engagement to areas squarely within their jurisdiction.

Media Contact:
Emily Johnson
emily@clearpathaction.org
(678) 761-1864

ABOUT CLEARPATH ACTION

ClearPath Action 501(c)(4) advocates for more clean energy innovation, modernized permitting and regulatory reform, America’s global competitiveness for manufacturing, and unlocking more American resources — solutions drawn from our friends at ClearPath. Learn more at clearpathaction.org. Follow us on X: @ClearPathAction, @jharrell

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