Federal Lawmakers Expected to Sneak Dirty Deal into Debt Ceiling Bill

Today, lawmakers are reportedly close to reaching a deal on so-called “permitting reform” amidst ongoing debt ceiling negotiations. If implemented, the deal would substantially weaken the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which enforces commonsense environmental impact reviews for energy projects. Previously pedaled by Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV), such policies will gut crucial public input processes and expedite toxic project approvals. In 2022, Manchin’s Dirty Deal faced numerous defeats in Congress due to lack of popular support.

Ariel Moger, Government and Political Affairs Director at Friends of the Earth, issued the following statement:

Once again, lawmakers are expected to make the unconscionable decision to tack unpopular and environmentally harmful policies onto a must-pass bill. This deal will put communities already suffering from environmental racism at further risk by gutting essential laws like NEPA. We should not be throwing people and the planet under a gas-guzzling bus just so that polluters can more easily build destructive projects. Biden and Congressional Democrats should stand up for environmental justice, reject this dirty deal, and pass a clean debt limit increase.