Updates to our Permitting Tools Inventory
the tl;dr In this first major update to our Permitting Tools Inventory we go from 82 to 112 tools to aid with permitting. We're seeing innovation in mapping and decision support, a growing focus on helping with NEPA processes, and the addition of AI tools for research, document creation, comment analysis, and more. Browse, search, and filter the inventory on our site or download a lighter csv version for your own research.
The EPIC Permitting Tools Inventory
Our Permitting Tools Inventory is a guide to the ever-changing landscape of programs and tools governments and organizations can use to manage the permitting process. We highlight applications, their owners (federal agencies, NGOs, private companies), the stages of permitting a tool applies to (site selection, application submission, review, post-permit compliance), and further details on the tools' use cases wherever possible. We hope sharing the information freely makes the process more transparent, showing which tools exist, where gaps remain, and how new technologies are appearing in the permitting space. While practitioners and the public are at the heart of permitting, great tools can help make the permitting process faster, easier, and more accountable.
A look at the current view of the inventory
What’s in this inventory?
Software programs for environmental permitting from federal and state agencies, non-profits, and private companies. We seek tools that help gather, organize, and share information throughout the permitting process. The inventory concentrates on publicly accessible or advertised applications, rather than providing a comprehensive list of internal systems. Inclusion of a tool in the inventory is not an endorsement.
How were these tools chosen?
This inventory focuses on publicly accessible or advertised applications, rather than a comprehensive list of internal systems used by permitting personnel. The initial release of the inventory sourced these applications from staff interviews with the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Department of Energy (DOE), as well as federal agency permitting websites, Google keyword searches, and snowball sampling from private companies. Future releases add tools based on market research, interviews with permitting professionals, and suggestions from the public.
How do I navigate the information in this inventory?
To explore tool types and information, scroll down within each category column (federal, non-profit, etc.) or across columns. To learn more about a specific tool (e.g., its owner, relevant permitting stage, etc.), click on the tool. To use a more detailed view of the inventory you can choose to View Larger Version at the bottom of the screen to access sort and filter tools. You can also filter results using the "Filter," "Sort," or keyword search features located at the top of the viewer. For a more tailored search, add "conditions" using the filter function to see tools organized by "owner" (e.g., Federal, State), "entity" (e.g., agency, company name), or "bureau." For a larger view, you can also use this link.
A view of how to select a filter for the inventory.
Take it home with you
The inventory is also available as a csv file to add to your own projects or do your own exploration. The Download CSV file link is located below the display window.
Fall 2025 update
In this first major update to the inventory, we check in on some old favorites, wave goodbye to some that were shelved or discontinued, and say hello to the new additions. A handful of projects we knew of in development at the Federal level have been withdrawn or put on hold due to funding and changing priorities with the new administration. This latest update increases the number of tools available to help teams with environmental permitting from 82 to 112.
Distribution of entries in the inventory as of September, 2025
More tools are being explicitly expanded across the permitting process, helping to move information from siting and design into permit applications and revisions. Technologists and product managers are becoming more adept at recognizing permitting as a space where the overlapping needs from siting and design converge. Several federal-level projects that we were aware of have been withdrawn or placed on hold due to funding issues and shifting priorities under the new administration.
Five trends we’re seeing
1. Integration of Mapping and Decision Support: There is a growing emphasis on integrating mapping and decision-support tools across permitting and NEPA-related processes. The future of permitting is becoming location-based, making it easier to delve into the specifics of the physical spaces where projects will happen.
2. Response to NEPA and Permitting Concerns: The market is reacting to concerns about NEPA and permitting by launching multiple companies aimed at improving speed, accuracy, and automation in these processes.
3. Focus on Crossing the Permitting Stages: More tools are thinking ahead about the long journey of the permitting process. Technologists and product managers are becoming more skilled in recognizing how the needs of siting and design, permitting, and the post-permit phase are increasingly interconnected.
4. Public Comment Handling in NEPA: There is an expansion in tools designed to handle public comments as part of the NEPA process. Over the past few years, comment and sentiment analysis has been a significant focus for federal agencies, leading to the emergence of tools that assist with this effort.
5. Integration of AI: Unsurprisingly, more companies are advocating for how they are incorporating AI into their tools. With the rise in publicly available data, we can expect more tools and large language models to analyze everything from mapping data to the NEPATEC2.0 corpus developed by our colleagues at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Got a suggestion?
Are you interested in this work? Did we miss something? A tool we missed in our latest update? A company that is doing great work in the permitting technology space? Let us know, we'd love to add more to the list.
Boon Sheridan is the Permitting Technology Lead at EPIC.