Environmental Permitting is Getting Better
#30PermittingWinsIn30Days | Midpoint Post
I’ve spent most of my time in Washington trying to make environmental permitting of all kinds simpler, faster, more predictable, and less subjective - believing all that is possible without an environmental downside. In fact, I know from experience how often permitting systems that work better for applicants also provide an upside for the planet. Yet, it has been a painful effort most of this time, when each step forward, like the creation of safe harbors, nationwide permits, or better regulations, seemed to be accompanied by more steps backward.
All that has changed now. There is a widespread and bipartisan recognition that we’ve allowed laws and rules that could be deftly and nimbly implemented to become a sprawling, incomprehensible, and often counterproductive maze of requirements and delays. Mayors and city councils are taking action. Businesses and environmental groups who want better alternatives have an audience. Governors are hiring senior staff whose first priority is addressing this problem. Legislatures and Congress are open to ideas on how to do permitting better.
It's not that permitting change might happen. It has changed, is changing, and will change more. We’ve had a great collaboration with the team at Inclusive Abundance these last 15 days, hearing about 15 ‘wins’ for permitting reform they wanted to celebrate. We are starting our own 15-day countdown now. It’s a great way to acknowledge all the progress underway to make environmental permitting laws and programs that better serve the planet, people, and our prosperity.
Highlights from Inclusive Abundance's list of 30 Permitting Wins in 30 Days.
State Legislatures and Agencies Taking Permitting Action
Montana’s legislature has created far less subjective permit approval criteria around housing and adopted a number of other reforms dubbed the ‘Montana miracle.’
North Carolina has moved permit applications online and created online tools to track the progress of any permit application.
Michigan’s legislature gave the Public Service Commission authority over major renewable energy projects, creating much more consistency in the permitting process.
California’s legislature led an effort to exempt housing from CEQA, the state’s major environmental planning and permitting law.
Massachusetts is working to cut environmental review time for housing projects from a year to 30 days – a 92% reduction.
Governors Taking Permitting Action
Indiana’s Governor Mike Braun used an executive order to have the state provide incredible transparency into permitting, with monthly or more active updates on all the permitting applications the state is reviewing.
Maryland’s Gov. Wes Moore used an executive order to create a new permit review council, meant to streamline the process for applications that require review by many agencies, and also established a concierge service that helps new businesses locating in the state get help to get through permitting
Pennsylvania's Governor Josh Shapiro got a highway bridge rebuilt and reopened just 12 days after it was destroyed by making hard choices and focusing on the big picture at every step of an emergency reconstruction project; California has its own success like this, too.
More than a dozen governors agree on practical permitting system changes they want to see from Washington.
Congress and the Executive Branch Taking Permitting Action
Congress has a great chance to pass bipartisan legislation called the ePermit Act that would dramatically improve federal data management around permitting and facilitate interagency decision-making.
The Inflation Reduction Act added $1 billion in federal money to better staff and process permit applications – staffing is rarely enough by itself, but more people are part of the solution to processing permit applications on time.
Dept of Energy took its own steps in 2024 to create much more internal coordination on transmission permitting.
Pacific Northwest Labs has launched a new effort to use AI to make NEPA-related permitting more effective.
Managing fire risk in national forests has already gotten easier because of past state and federal actions; the bipartisan Fix our Forests Act has a lot of promise to make it possible to complete planning and permitting for large-scale forest management, especially around fire risk.
Bipartisan legislation in the House of Representatives to make permitting simpler and faster for new transmission lines
