WASHINGTON, W.Va. (WV News) — Just days after Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., re-introduced a bill aimed at overhauling the federal permitting process for energy projects, Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., has introduced a permitting bill of her own.
Capito, ranking member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, put forward the Revitalizing the Economy by Simplifying Timelines and Assuring Regulatory Transparency (RESTART) Act.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, also introduced the Spur Permitting of Underdeveloped Resources (SPUR) Act.
Speaking during her weekly virtual media briefing Thursday, Capito said she and Barrasso have been working with the chairs of the respective committees to try to get to a “bipartisan, regular-order permitting bill.”
“We see so many projects held up, abandoned or not being able to get completed because they can’t get the permits,” she said.
“American energy can no longer be held hostage. That’s exactly what’s happening under the Biden administration. Environmental extremists are manipulating a broken permitting process. The bills Senator Capito and I are introducing will fix this problem,” Barrasso said in a statement.
Both Manchin and Capito have been involved in multiple attempts over the last year to pass a permitting bill that would aid the completion of the long-delayed Mountain Valley Pipeline project.
“We’ve been working this issue for months now,” Capito said. “We have major differences — no doubt — we’re going to try and iron out some of those differences.
The West Virginia Chamber of Commerce issued a statement Thursday afternoon applauding the promise of the RESTART Act.
“Senator Capito has always been a leader in bringing together senators from both parties in a bi-partisan fashion and this bill promises to be one of those issues where real progress can be made to improve the lives of our citizens,” Chamber President Steve Roberts said.
Manchin’s bill, the Building American Energy Security Act is intended to “serve as a starting point for upcoming conversations in the Senate around reforming energy permitting to ensure American energy security and independence,” according to a statement from Manchin’s office.
“I am introducing the Building American Energy Security Act today to restart the conversation in the Senate about accelerating our permitting process as the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee continues to discuss, consider and act on advancing this critical topic,” Manchin said.
“There is overwhelming bipartisan recognition that our current permitting processes aren’t working, and equally bipartisan support for addressing it through comprehensive permitting reform legislation,” Manchin said.