Top 10 Changes In The Debt Ceiling Deal's NEPA Reforms

The first amendments to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in decades might materially narrow NEPA reviews and streamline federal permitting of oil, gas, and renewable energy projects, leasing on federal lands, and reviews for roads, bridges, and other infrastructure projects, including the extent to which federal agencies must consider greenhouse gas emissions said to impact climate change. President Biden recently signed the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 into law, which raised the U.S. debt ceiling. Included among the spending provisions is Section 321, known as the Builder Act. These congressional amendments to NEPA codify past regulatory reforms, and could impact the pending effort of the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to promulgate a "Phase 2" set of regulatory amendments to the current NEPA rules. We explore primary changes to the statute and potential implications.