Congress Seeks a Shot Clock on the Permitting Fast Lane

A Department of Energy analysis found that faster permitting alone could more than double geothermal capacity by 2050.

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Steam rises during a test from a well at the Coso geothermal field at the China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station in China Lake, Calif., in 2008

Fred Prouser/Reuters

Congress is on the verge of fixing one of the strangest defects in federal permitting: an environmental review designed to be fast that has no time limitation.

Introduced on September 30, the Senate’s new Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA) would, among many other permitting changes, impose a one-year deadline on federal permitting decisions for certain energy and infrastructure projects that do not require an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.

TR

About the Author

Tobias Russell

Tobias Russell is the strategic research manager for the environment and natural resources practice group at the Pacific Legal Foundation.

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