WASHINGTON –  Today, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-21) and Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee Bruce Westerman (AR-04) introduced the Determination of NEPA Adequacy Streamlining Act. This bill would streamline the approval process for energy production by allowing the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to use previously conducted Environmental Assessments or Environmental Impact Statements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for the approval of projects with similar environmental impacts. 

“We need to cut government red tape to streamline critical energy production projects in my community and throughout the country,” said Congressman Valadao. “Streamlining the slow, bureaucratic approval process by allowing Secretaries to use previously conducted and scientifically sound environmental reviews under NEPA will help move these unnecessarily tied up projects across the finish line. At a time when energy prices are soaring for Central Valley families, this commonsense reform will allow us to increase our supply of safe, clean, and affordable energy.”

“If we don’t take immediate action, high energy costs will continue forcing American families to make tough decisions at the grocery store and in their daily lives, particularly as we head into the colder months. One of the biggest roadblocks to domestic energy is a confusing jumble of bureaucratic red tape, which bogs down even renewable energy projects in years of development limbo,” said Ranking Member Westerman. “Congressman Valadao’s legislation is an important first step in clarifying NEPA and allowing federal agencies to use previously-conducted environmental documents to apply to similar projects. It’s a commonsense problem to a systemic issue, and I hope to see it move quickly through the legislative process.”

The full text of the bill can be found here.

###