A bipartisan permitting reform deal aimed toward expediting the approval of certain projects and lowering energy costs fell apart this week in the Senate, making it all but certain an agreement won’t come together until after the midterm elections.
Talks between top negotiators on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources and Environment and Public Works committees fell apart this week, leaving the status of the package unclear. Republican leaders expressed frustration with their Democratic counterparts, whom they accused of backpedaling on a deal that secured major concessions from the Trump administration.
“Republicans are 100% committed to permitting reform. The Democrats – specifically Chuck Schumer – don’t seem to care at all about what’s happening around the country,” Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said in a statement. “They seem to be happier with higher energy costs. We need energy costs down. We need to be able to do construction to build things better, faster, cheaper, stronger.”
Details of the permitting deal have not been released nor have they been finalized. But the latest iteration of the framework was set to include language on data centers and managing utility costs as well as an agreement from the White House to unfreeze the approval process for wind and solar projects, sources familiar with the talks told the Deseret News.
Top Democrats negotiating the deal said they needed more time to consider the proposal and give party members an opportunity to review it. Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., also said he wanted assurances the Trump administration would follow through with its promises.
“I appreciate very much what the Trump administration has done to move in this direction, but in order to brief colleagues on what this really means, we need just a bit more clarity on exactly what return to regular order for wind and solar projects looks like,” Whitehouse told reporters on Thursday. “So that’s still to be done, but that I think can happen in fairly short order.”
Yearslong process on permitting reform
Efforts to streamline the energy permitting process have been in the works for years. Both parties agree the current system is too slow for approving projects and keeping up with growing energy demands, but they disagree on how to implement such guardrails.
But the desire to come to an agreement has become more urgent in recent months as affordability emerged as a centerpiece of the midterm elections.
Republicans have since accused Democrats of walking away from the negotiating table to harm their chances in November.
“Democratic leadership is blocking permitting reform simply to prevent Republicans from getting a win before the midterms,” Sen. Alan Armstrong, who has made permitting reform a top priority during his term, said in a statement. “We have cooperated with everything Democrats asked for, yet they walked away & put short-term political efforts ahead of what is best for the country. The American people cannot afford more partisan stalling while energy costs skyrocket.”
There’s still time for a deal to come together, but those involved in the negotiations say it’s likely to be punted until after the November election. Even then, lawmakers will face a stacked legislative schedule and a possible shift in power dynamics depending on the election results.
The White House has suggested its concessions, particularly those on unfreezing wind and solar projects, may not still be on the table if Democrats delay.
“The Administration and congressional Republicans agreed to a strong bipartisan offer. The Democrats have since refused to take yes for an answer,” a White House official told the Deseret News. “If they think that the administration is going to freeze these concessions until the lame duck, they are severely mistaken.”
But those in the minority say such a substantial framework requires more time.
“The goal here has always been to pass permitting reform, not just to introduce it,” a Senate Democratic aide involved with the negotiations but granted anonymity to discuss the deal told the Deseret News.
The Senate is scheduled to adjourn for its campaign recess period next week. Senators are not scheduled to return until Nov. 9 — after which they’ll have just five weeks of legislative work until the new Congress is sworn in.
“The deal exceeded everybody’s expectations, what both sides gave, and Democrats to now pull away sounds very political,” Utah Sen. John Curtis told the Deseret News. “I think it’s worse than nearly dead. It sounds dead dead.”