Federal government permitting victories marked by President Trump: a record-breaking achievement
The Trump Administration has implemented significant reforms to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), aiming to expedite infrastructure development and reduce costs. The key changes include rescinding and rewriting NEPA regulations, streamlining environmental review processes, and imposing strict deadlines and page limits on environmental assessments.
Following Executive Order 14154, signed on January 20, 2025, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) rescinded its prior NEPA regulations and issued new guidance and interim final rules to replace them. This move was intended to simplify the NEPA process government-wide, reducing the regulatory burden and accelerating project approvals.
The Department of Energy (DOE) issued an interim final NEPA rule to eliminate or expedite environmental reviews for authorizations, permits, approvals, and leases. The rule establishes new categorical exclusions for certain reactor types and relies more heavily on supplemental analyses or alternative procedures for projects located on existing sites. The rule also removes most prior DOE NEPA procedures from the Code of Federal Regulations to streamline compliance.
The Department of Transportation (USDOT) consolidated multiple NEPA procedural documents into a unified order (5610.1D), alongside updated procedures for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and joint procedures for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), and Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Important changes include enforceable deadlines and page limits for environmental studies, clarification that NEPA applies only when agencies truly control a project's environmental footprint, and expanded use of categorical exclusions for routine, low-impact activities.
These changes, which also include broad interagency coordination, aim to create a consistent, government-wide approach to streamline the NEPA process, reduce duplication, and cut costs while maintaining environmental review standards. However, critics have raised concerns that the changes may substantially limit opportunities for public input and reduce transparency in environmental decision-making.
Under President Trump's leadership, CEQ is taking decisive action to reform, modernize, and expedite the Federal environmental review, eliminating unnecessary delays that are holding back the growth of secure and reliable infrastructure projects across the Nation. The rescinding of CEQ's NEPA regulations is a response to the direction from all three branches of the Federal government, including the BUILDER Act amendments from the United States Congress and a recent United States Supreme Court decision in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County.
These reforms are presented as fulfilling promises to fix a "broken permitting system" and to enable faster, more affordable infrastructure development, particularly in energy-related projects and transportation. The rescinding of CEQ's NEPA regulations will enable Federal agencies to cut unnecessary layers of bureaucracy in record time, paving the way for a more efficient and cost-effective environmental review process.
- Critics express concerns that the reforms in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), led by the Trump Administration, may limit opportunities for public input and reduce transparency in environmental decision-making.
- The Department of Transportation (USDOT) introduced changes to its NEPA procedures, incorporating enforceable deadlines, page limits for environmental studies, and expanded use of categorical exclusions for routine, low-impact activities, aiming to create a consistent approach to streamline the NEPA process.
- The Trump Administration's policies and legislative actions, including the rescinding of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ)'s NEPA regulations, are aligned with the opinion that these reforms will modernize and expedite the Federal environmental review, particularly for infrastructure projects in energy and transportation, while maintaining environmental standards.
