Senate reaches bipartisan deal on permitting bill to speed approvals of new energy projects

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senators from both parties said Wednesday they have reached a bipartisan deal on legislation aimed at speeding up permitting reviews for new energy and infrastructure projects that now face yearslong delays as lawmakers seek to meet growing demand for electricity and other forms of energy. The bill, proponents argue, would cut down the arduous timeline for getting big energy projects off the ground at a time when demand is rising because of mushrooming data centers for AI. The bill would ensure data centers are forced to pay for the increased electricity they use and would mark a significant change to a landmark environmental law that critics say slows down the process of building energy products.

Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, called the bill “a major step toward making it faster and more efficient and easier to build infrastructure projects” of all types while maintaining important environmental protections. Vote on the bill won’t happen until after the midterms “The American people sent us here to do big things. It’s monumental and it’s legacy-setting,” Capito said at a news conference at the Capitol where she was joined by Republican Sen.

Mike Lee of Utah and Democratic Sens. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island. The four senators lead the chamber’s energy and environment panels.

Heinrich said the bill “will mean more energy on the grid, more good-paying jobs, and lower electricity costs for families and businesses. And as data centers drive demand for more power, it will ensure they pay their fair share of the grid upgrades they require – not leave that bill to American families.” A vote on the bill won’t happen until after the midterm elections — reflecting the fraught political reality as elections loom that could change partisan control of both chambers. But the bill represents a rare instance of bipartisanship over the country’s energy policy as lawmakers from both parties agree on the need to build new energy projects of all types.

Lee, who chairs the energy committee, said he is confident the bill will be approved in a lame-duck session in November, noting its bipartisan support and encouragement from business and environmental groups. Whitehouse, the top Democrat on the environment panel, also was ho… The four senators lead the chamber's energy and environment panels.Heinrich said the bill “will mean more energy on the grid, more good-paying jobs, and lower electricity costs for families and businesses.