Grijalva Reacts to Manchin-Barrasso Pro-Polluter Permitting Bill

WASHINGTON – U.S. House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the Energy Permitting Reform Act, introduced by Senators Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) this week.

“I’ve said it enough times, but it clearly bears repeating that checking off wish lists for oil, gas, and mining companies is not permitting reform,” said Ranking Member Grijalva. “From opening major expanses of our public lands and waters for drilling to gutting judicial review to letting mining companies dump even more waste on our public lands, this bill is yet another resuscitated iteration of the Dirty Deal — not a meaningful attempt at securing the clean energy future Americans want.”

“To make the bold, just clean energy transition that the climate crisis demands, the Environmental Justice for All Act and Clean Electricity and Transmission Act already offer the suite of community protections and transmission authorities we need. Why we would forgo those community-led solutions for this pro-polluter gift set is beyond me. I strongly urge my colleagues in the Senate to reject this misguided bill.”

Additional Background

Among other provisions, the Energy Permitting Reform Act does the following:

Weakens enforcement of several environmental and public health laws by greatly limiting the statute of limitations to challenge unlawful permitting decisions, including decisions required by the National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act.
Reverses the Biden-Harris administration’s pause on liquefied natural gas (LNG) export approvals, blocking the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to ensure that approved LNG projects properly account for climate risks and do not increase energy costs for American consumers.
Fast-tracks future approvals for LNG export projects with strict, yet arbitrary deadlines. The U.S. is already the number one exporter of LNG worldwide, and exports are expected to double by 2030.
Requires at least one offshore oil and gas lease sale per year, with a minimum of 60 million acres to be offered to oil and gas drilling each year.
Allows hardrock mining projects to dump toxic mining waste on even more public lands by allowing them to claim as many lands for “mill sites” as they need for nominal fees.
Sets strict, yet arbitrary deadlines for approving coal leases on public land.
Exempts oil and gas drilling projects on certain parcels of land from federal laws and the federal permitting process entirely.

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