Senate Permitting Reform Bill Slammed as 'Biggest Giveaway' to Fossil Fuel Industry

Green groups on Monday blasted the introduction of an energy permitting reform bill in the U.S. Senate, warning the proposal is a massive gift to the fossil fuel industry that will reduce public input on critical decisions and exacerbate the climate emergency.

U.S. Sens. Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.)—respectively the chair and ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee—released the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024, which the panel said "will strengthen American energy security by accelerating the permitting process for critical energy and mineral projects of all types in the United States."

Among other reforms, the bill "accelerates leasing and permitting decisions for all types of energy projects on federal lands" and requires the interior secretary to "hold at least one offshore wind lease sale and one offshore oil and gas lease sale per year" from 2025-29.

Manchin, a former right-wing Democrat with deep family ties to the coal industry, has been trying—and failing—to pass fossil fuel-friendly permitting reform legislation for years.

"This Frankenstein legislation is nothing less than the biggest giveaway in decades to the fossil fuel industry," said Brett Hartl, the government affairs director at the Center for Biological Diversity. "The insignificant crumbs thrown at renewable energy do nothing to address the climate crisis, but instead would make it game over for a livable planet."

Sierra Club Beyond Fossil Fuels policy director Mahyar Sorour said in a statement that "those who promote this kind of so-called 'permitting reform' claim that it's necessary to accelerate the deployment of clean energy, but in truth this is nothing more than yet another attempt by fossil fuel industry boosters to give handouts for polluters at the expense of our communities and the climate."

"We urge Congress to put forward real solutions to build a clean energy economy, and not pair those reforms with more attempts to pad the pockets of fossil fuel executives under the guise of reducing emissions," Sorour added.

There is widespread agreement that energy permitting reform is sorely needed. However, climate campaigners argue that reform efforts must not perpetuate or expand the use of planet-heating fossil fuels. Some advocates say the answer lies in legislation like the A. Donald McEachin Environmental Justice for All Act.

The bill—which is named after the late Democratic Virginia congressman—was introduced last year by Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) in the Senate and Reps. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Barbara Lee (Calif.) in the House. The legislation aims to ensure timely and meaningful public notification for all new energy projects and adequate community review. It would require federal agencies to weigh the environmental justice impacts of proposed projects during the permitting process.