Democrats: Permitting talks dead with Trump wind freeze
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Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, left, and Martin Heinrich flank then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer at a 2021 news conference. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images
Bipartisan talks to overhaul federal agencies' permitting efforts are dead unless the Trump administration reconsiders its halt of offshore wind projects, two key Democrats said Monday.
Why it matters: Revamping the process for green-lighting industry projects is of paramount importance for many business groups.
- Those groups contend that a permitting overhaul must be done via legislation for any changes to be meaningful and consistent.
The big picture: Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), the Environment and Public Works Committee's top Democrat, and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), who holds the same position on Energy and Natural Resources, said in a statement that "there is no path to permitting reform if this administration refuses to follow the law."
- The administration's "reckless and vindictive assault on wind energy doesn't just undermine one of our cheapest, cleanest power sources, it wrecks the trust needed with the executive branch for bipartisan permitting reform," the senators said.
- "The illegal attacks on fully permitted renewable energy projects must be reversed if there is to be any chance that permitting talks resume."
Context: The administration said earlier Monday that it's immediately pausing all leases for offshore wind projects under construction due to "national security risks."
- It follows billions of dollars in investments into the large-scale projects.
- The Interior Department identified five Atlantic Coast projects affected: Vineyard Wind 1 off Massachusetts; Revolution Wind off Rhode Island and Connecticut; Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind; and offshore New York projects called Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind.
The other side: The Interior Department's offshore wind announcement alleged national security risks "identified by the Department of War in recently completed classified reports."
- It alleges that unclassified reports show that offshore wind can create radar interference called "clutter."
Zoom in: The House last week passed the SPEED Act, legislation that would make what supporters say are long-needed changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), a key permitting law.
- Many observers, however, said any final bill won't look like the SPEED Act, which drew just 11 Democratic House votes.
The bottom line: Until Monday's announcement, Senate Democrats had been confident they could strike an agreement on permitting with Republicans.
- Whitehouse and Heinrich commended Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) for their "good-faith efforts" to reach a compromise.
- "There was a deal to be had that would have taken politics out of permitting, made the process faster and more efficient, and streamlined grid infrastructure improvements nationwide," the Democrats said.
