McCarthy walks through the Capitol in November. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Tweaks to federal permitting are expected in the debt ceiling deal between House Republican leadership and the Biden administration.
Why it matters: The deal, if enacted, could notch big wins on the permitting process that members of both parties were pushing for.
- But it might not go far enough to appease Republicans who voted for a debt fix that included HR 1's more aggressive changes to environmental laws.
- The emerging deal appears to also avoid targeting energy and climate programs in the Inflation Reduction Act — a major victory for Biden that will be a bridge too far for some House conservatives.
Details: The debt ceiling deal will make the "first significant reform to NEPA since 1982," according to a one-pager obtained by Axios' Andrew Solender.
- A source familiar with negotiations tells Axios this would include one-year timelines for environmental assessments and two-year timelines for environmental impact statements.
- It would also let one agency take the lead on an individual NEPA review.
- It would change NEPA without addressing statutes of limitations or judicial relief against projects.
Between the lines: All energy sources would benefit from these kinds of permitting changes. But it's unclear if this is the Goldilocks compromise that'll help secure enough votes to pass a debt ceiling fix.
