The House of Representatives has passed legislation that could revise permitting and environmental reviews for new energy projects. The Standardized Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act was drafted to amend the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, which established the practice of required environmental reviews for major projects. The legislation was approved in the House and is heading to the Senate for further deliberation.
The SPEED Act proposes to increase the number of project-related actions that don’t require environmental review, place limits on review lengths and establish review deadlines. The House reportedly amended the legislation to further prevent offshore wind project development. House Democrats believe it is unfriendly to renewable energy projects.
“The bill was never a serious solution to real permitting challenges. It does not create certainty — it creates confusion, risk and higher costs,” said Manish Bapna, president and CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council, in a press statement. “And late-breaking changes affected behind closed doors only made it worse, further penalizing the cheapest and fastest-to-deploy clean energy technologies that are desperately needed as power demand soars. It should be a nonstarter in the Senate.”
Renewable energy and environmental groups are opposing the SPEED Act in its current state. The American Clean Power (ACP) Association withdrew its support for the SPEED Act on Wednesday.
“Our support for permitting reform has always rested on one principle: Fixing a broken system for all energy resources,” said ACP CEO Jason Grumet in a press statement. “The amendment adopted last night violates that principle. Technology neutrality wasn’t just good policy — it was the political foundation that made reform achievable.”
“The SPEED Act falls short of ensuring a fair and predictable permitting process that enables developers to invest, build and compete,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), in a press statement. “For months, SEIA and our member companies have worked relentlessly to advance permitting reform in Congress to help lower energy costs and build the infrastructure needed to win the AI race and beat China. But without action to address this unequal treatment of solar, energy projects across the country will continue to stall.”
