Bipartisan Permitting Bill Splits Greens From Clean Power Industry

A bipartisan Senate bill would accelerate permitting for everything from solar farms and power lines to oil and gas pipelines, uniting the fossil fuel and renewable energy industries while pitting environmental groups against the green power sector.

The Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA) is coauthored by Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., alongside Sens. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. — a group calling itself the "Four Corners." The bill has the unusual support of both Whitehouse, one of the Senate's most vocal climate advocates, and the Trump White House.

Supporters call it potentially the most important decision Congress makes before January for the tech boom, the environment, and energy affordability. Power demand is rising at a nearly unprecedented scale, driven largely by the data center construction spree, while electricity and utility prices spike amid rising demand and antiquated infrastructure.

The legislation would:

• accelerate permitting timelines for solar farms, transmission lines, and pipelines;
• make it harder for presidential administrations to yank permits;
• narrow environmental reviews;
• limit litigation outside of federal courts.

Votes are unlikely to begin until after the Nov. 3 midterm elections, and supporters concede plenty could still go sideways.

What does the bill unlock for clean energy?

Ben Norris, senior vice president of regulatory affairs for the Solar Energy Industries Association, said the legislation takes an unprecedented approach to bundling streamlining proposals into a single bill.

"The amount of new clean energy, new transmission capacity that's going to be unlocked under this bipartisan-negotiated language is well worth the tradeoffs that are made in other places," Norris told Fortune.

"This is one of the best products, if not the best product, that we're going to see, and we want to be part of the coalition that gets it across the finish line," Norris added. "The bill goes a long way to getting lots of different sources of new electricity online, which is going to put downward pressure on prices."

One of the biggest beneficiaries would be massive electric transmission systems — power lines that are exceedingly hard to build across private land. Renewables gain the most: transmission networks from windy rural areas such as Kansas to population centers in other states would expand wind energy's reach. Texas renewables took off only after the state Legislature authorized transmission lines hundreds of miles from the windy western part of the state to Houston and Dallas; Texas now leads the country in both utility-scale wind and solar power, having recently taken the solar crown from California.

Why do environmentalists oppose it?

Earthjustice Action President Abigail Dillen conceded the bill represents a "genuine policy breakthrough on transmission and modernization of our electric grid," but said it "eviscerates bedrock protections for water, wetlands, endangered species, and the most basic expectations for transparency and responsible environmental analysis."

"A deal that fast-tracks more gas, closes courthouse doors, and dismantles our laws to further embolden a lawless administration is not a compromise we can afford now," Dillen said, arguing the bill would lead to more fossil fuel pipelines, gas-fired plants, massive data center complexes, and greater pollution.

The Sierra Club argued the legislation weakens the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Clean Water Act — including states' ability to use their own courts to protect waterways. Critics also note many Democrats back the bill only because Trump has held clean energy hostage by yanking offshore wind permits and stalling onshore wind and solar projects, while Congress canceled federal tax credits for most renewable projects.

What's in it for oil and gas?

The fossil fuel industry contends the bill would prevent states and environmental groups from weaponizing courts to stop projects for reasons beyond federal statutes. Toby Rice, CEO of Pennsylvania-based EQT, said the legislation will bring utility and inflationary prices down while creating certainty for infrastructure builders.

"If you think it's hard to get a pipeline built, try building a transmission line," Rice told Fortune. "This will give us a start, and this will at least get us back to having the confidence to get things built in this country."

Rice speaks from experience: EQT's 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline took a decade and a literal act of Congress to build after repeated courtroom defeats.

"This is going to benefit all forms of energy, and I think one of the key principles that we've been advocating for has been a tech-neutral approach," Rice said. "Let's just enable all forms of energy to get built and let the market force determine what's the best."

The bill would also likely have prevented the Biden administration's 2024 permitting pause on liquefied natural gas export projects — a signal that its constraints on executive power would cut both ways. Democrats now face a choice: take the deal before them, or gamble on crafting a friendlier version next year that would still require 60 Senate votes and could face a Trump veto.