API urges Congress to fix broken permitting system
The American Petroleum Institute (API) has published a new policy roadmap urging U.S. Congress to modernize the nation’s outdated permitting system and ensure access to affordable, reliable energy at a time of rising demand and soaring electricity costs. The plan outlines concrete steps for durable, comprehensive solutions that cuts red tape, sets clear deadlines and provides legal certainty.
“American energy is ready to go, but Washington’s broken permitting system is standing in the way,” said API President and CEO Mike Sommers. “As energy demand rises, critical infrastructure to deliver it is stuck behind red tape. It’s time for Congress to act on durable reforms that ensure access to affordable, reliable, and secure energy – because when America builds, America wins.”
API’s permitting reform plan outlines critical reform areas, including:
Set deadlines, enforce them
- Enforce statutory timelines under the Clean Water Act
- Eliminate last-minute information roadblocks
- Improve permitting timelines on federal lands and waters
- Establish a modern, uniform process for cross-border energy projects
Stop lawsuits, start building
- Set clear timelines for legal challenges
- Fix instead of canceling permits
- Provide long-term certainty through nationwide permits
- Keep projects moving once reviews are complete
Targeted reviews, swift decisions
- Clarify limitations on actions subject to NEPA
- Limit reviews to direct project impacts
- Direct agencies to stay within their authority
- Prohibit use of the social cost of carbon in reviews
