Big changes afoot for energy permits

Presented by NRECA: Your guide to the political forces shaping the energy transformation

Apr 30, 2024 View in browser   By Arianna Skibell Presented by  President Joe Biden steps off Marine One at the White House on Friday. | Susan Walsh/AP The nation’s bedrock environmental law is getting a makeover. President Joe Biden today announced a final rule to revamp the administration’s implementation of the 54-year-old National Environmental Policy Act in an effort to speed up permitting for key clean energy projects. The rule is critical for achieving Biden’s green agenda as he mounts his 2024 reelection bid, writes Kevin Bogardus. But it’s already facing pushback from Republican lawmakers and Democratic foe Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. The rule sets deadlines and page limits for the environmental reviews that agencies conduct for all projects seeking permits. It requires one agency to lead the review of any particular permit, rather than giving veto power to multiple agencies. The changes will apply to permits for both clean energy projects — including solar storage and electric vehicle charging — and those involving fossil fuels. But some clean energy projects may be eligible for even more accelerated reviews. But administration officials emphasized that the rule maintains environmental protections. Agencies will still conduct NEPA reviews but with “fewer pages in faster time,“ one official told reporters. The rule also requires agencies to consider a project’s implications for climate change and impacts on disadvantaged communities. Many of the rule’s provisions stem from the debt ceiling deal Biden negotiated with GOP congressional leaders last year. But Manchin argues that the rule doesn’t adhere closely enough to that deal, accusing the administration of “corrupting it with their own radical agenda.” He vowed to roll it back through a Congressional Review Act resolution (which Biden would almost certainly veto). Manchin and other lawmakers have been working on their own legislative compromise to speed up the permitting of the clean energy projects that Democrats favor and the pipelines and gas export terminals backed by Republicans. “At a time when everyone agrees that it takes too long to build infrastructure in this country, the Administration’s new NEPA regulations will take us backwards,” Manchin said in a statement. Republican state attorneys general have also criticized the measure, saying in comments filed last year that it constitutes “a dramatic example of federal and administrative overreach.” But environmentalists and Democrats say the rule could go a long way in safeguarding vulnerable communities while boosting clean energy projects that help curb climate change. "We do not have to sacrifice environmental justice, community safeguards, public health or environmental protections to fight climate change and build the clean energy economy we need,” said Christy Goldfuss with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The rules’ durability will likely also depend on whether Biden wins his reelection campaign. Former President Donald Trump, who previously restricted environmental reviews, could initiate a process to repeal Biden’s regulation.   It's Tuesday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Arianna Skibell. Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to askibell@eenews.net.   A message from NRECA: American families and businesses expect the lights to stay on at a cost they can afford. Unfortunately, the path outlined by the EPA last week undermines electric reliability and poses grave consequences for an already stressed electric grid. The American economy can’t succeed without reliable electricity. That’s why electric co-ops are fighting for smart energy policies that prioritize reliability and affordability for all. Learn more.   Listen to today’s POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy’s podcast: As leaders gathered in Ottawa, Canada, for U.N. talks aimed at significantly curtailing the world’s plastic pollution, Jordan Wolman sat down with California Democrat Rep. Jared Huffman to discuss the importance of reaching an ambitious deal.   A message from NRECA:   Power Centers Senate Budget Chair Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) is accusing the oil and gas industry of trying to undermine action against climate change. | Francis Chung/POLITICO Oil document dump Congressional investigators have released documents that detail how oil majors contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to top universities to build relationships that could help the industry avoid taking climate action, write Emma Dumain and Corbin Hiar. The massive trove of new private correspondence, memos, presentations and talking points from top executives at Exxon Mobil, Chevron, BP, Shell, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Petroleum Institute will be at the center of a hearing Wednesday morning before the Senate Budget Committee. Electric trucks face harsh desert reality In an effort to electrify the trucking industry, the Biden administration is trying to build charging stations along critical freight routes in the Southwest. But creating a corridor for green trucking is easier said than done, writes Mike Lee. A single charging plaza may need as much power as the Empire State Building and much of the southwestern U.S. is remote desert — making it difficult to connect power-hungry charging stations to the grid. Ukraine is sapping Russia’s fuel A wave of Ukrainian drone strikes on oil refineries inside Russia has left the world’s largest petrostate running low on fuel, writes Gabriel Gavin. Diesel prices for Russian consumers have skyrocketed, rising almost 10 percent in the past week alone, according to the government’s figures. In Other News Ruff news for pets: Climate change is fueling a rise in heartworms among dogs and cats in the Pacific Northwest. Florida in 50 years: A new study found that land conservation may be needed as a buffer for the destructive force of climate change.   THE GOLD STANDARD OF ENERGY POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries, like energy, equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists. Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other. Our energy reporting team—including Ben Lefebvre, Alex Guillen and Kelsey Tamborrino—is embedded with the market-moving legislative committees and agencies in Washington and across states, delivering unparalleled coverage of energy policy and the energy industry. We bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY.     Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. The Marshall Steam Station coal power plant operates March 3 near Mooresville, North Carolina. | Chris Carlson/AP A move by the world’s wealthiest economies to phase out coal-fired power by 2035 could further cement U.S. efforts to put an end to the most polluting form of energy and encourage other countries to follow. In a new report, Energy Department's analysts say AI is needed to better predict damage from storm surges and flooding and to pinpoint vulnerabilities in electricity infrastructure. The Energy Department has clarified that critical minerals mining and extraction projects are eligible to receive funding from the Loan Programs Office — a notable declaration. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   POLITICO IS BACK AT THE 2024 MILKEN INSTITUTE GLOBAL CONFERENCE: POLITICO will again be your eyes and ears at the 27th Annual Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles from May 5-8 with exclusive, daily, reporting in our Global Playbook newsletter. Suzanne Lynch will be on the ground covering the biggest moments, behind-the-scenes buzz and on-stage insights from global leaders in health, finance, tech, philanthropy and beyond. Get a front-row seat to where the most interesting minds and top global leaders confront the world’s most pressing and complex challenges — subscribe today.       A message from NRECA: Keeping the lights on has never been more important. Families, businesses and America’s national security depend on reliable electricity every day. But that’s no longer a guarantee. Over the next five years, 19 states from Montana to Louisiana are at high risk of rolling blackouts during normal peak conditions. We must have a serious conversation in this country about where we’re going and what it will take to realistically get there. The stakes are too high to get this wrong. As electricity demand grows and supply fails to keep up, bad public policy is making the problem worse. The barrage of new EPA rules ignores our nation’s ongoing electric reliability challenges and is the wrong approach at a critical time for our nation’s energy future. That’s why America’s electric co-ops are fighting for smarter energy policies that prioritize reliability and affordability for all.     Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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