Improving Interagency Coordination for Pipeline Reviews Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. HUDSON. Mr. Speaker, my bill, H.R. 3668, would guarantee we protect the environment, ensure we protect public health, and lower energy costs by speeding up energy projects through much-needed reforms to the permitting of interstate natural gas pipelines.

The development of interstate pipelines currently faces significant regulatory and statutory hurdles. In fact, in 2024, we produced less than half the pipeline miles we built just 5 years ago.

Our regulatory and statutory permitting process must both protect the environment and reflect the urgency and importance of the projected growth in natural gas demand.

Despite the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission being granted increased authority under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, pipeline project approvals are consistently delayed because of a lack of coordination between the numerous agencies involved in the permitting process.

My bill would make this process more efficient by bringing stakeholders, including agencies, to the table so concerns can be identified early in the process. From there, agencies participating in the permitting process would perform important environmental reviews while complying with schedules established by FERC.

H.R. 3668 would also improve the water quality review process by moving that responsibility from the States to FERC.

For the past decade, a few States, especially in the Northeast, have used this federally delegated section 401 authority to obstruct interstate projects. These States have stood outside the FERC-led National Environmental Policy Act process and used their section 401 authority as a one-State veto of a multistate project of national significance. This has been detrimental to the development of critical pipeline infrastructure.

I want to be clear: My bill would continue the safeguards of the environment. We have some of the strongest environmental laws on the planet. This legislation protects those laws while expediting critical energy infrastructure.

We want to fuel our Nation forward. If we want to lower costs for consumers, win the AI race against China, and strengthen our position as an energy superpower, it is critical that we have a regulatory and statutory process in place that allows us to build infrastructure in this country.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this legislation.

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