Permitting Reform Is Key to Lowering Costs for American Families
America’s soaring housing and energy prices stem from a broken permitting system. Talent, capital and innovation are abundant; red tape is the real bottleneck.
Supply constraints drive up prices. Faster, predictable approvals lower costs for families.
Decades of expanding National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements have turned environmental review into a procedural maze. The maze stalls projects for years.
Every month a project lingers in regulatory limbo. Financing costs rise, construction expenses climb, and investors demand higher returns, ultimately passing the burden to consumers.
The Mountain Valley Pipeline, proposed in 2014, took nearly a decade to complete. Exhaustive reviews, litigation under NEPA, the Endangered Species Act and the Clean Water Act delayed construction, and Congress had to act to finish it.
Housing projects suffer similar delays. The former Mare Island Naval Shipyard redevelopment remains unfinished because environmental remediation and overlapping federal oversight continue to block construction.
These delays raise home prices, rents, utility bills and the cost of goods. They also deter investment and job creation.
Reforming permitting does not mean weakening environmental standards. Timely decisions and robust protections can coexist.
Congress can modernize the system by setting reasonable agency deadlines, improving coordination, narrowing duplicative litigation opportunities, and providing greater regulatory certainty. The SPEED Act, FREEDOM Act and PERMIT Act outline these changes.
Bipartisan support for these proposals shows permitting delays are a practical, not partisan, obstacle. They hinder economic growth and competitiveness regardless of party.
If lawmakers act now, they will deliver affordable housing, lower energy prices and a stronger economy. American families will feel the impact immediately.
Pat Toomey, former Pennsylvania senator and advisor to Americans for Free Markets, underscores the urgency. His bipartisan stance highlights the need for swift action.
