WASHINGTON, D.C. — A broad group of outside stakeholders and issue experts have voiced support for measures to reform and modernize America’s broken permitting process. Last week Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee (ENR) and Shelley Moore Capito, Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) introduced S. 1456, the SPUR Act, and S. 1449, the RESTART Act, respectively. Taken together, this package will bring much-needed reform of the nation’s broken permitting and environmental review processes.

Since their introduction, both measures have received support from a broad range of elected officials and outside stakeholders.

Associated General Contractors of America, Vice President of Government Relations Jimmy Christianson:

“Increases in fuel prices have driven up costs for equipment deliveries, construction materials like asphalt, and for transporting these materials to jobsites. Higher fuel prices also force construction workers to spend more commuting to job sites – especially in rural areas where workers have long commutes. The SPUR Act will help lower energy costs by expediting the permitting process and increasing energy production.”

Western Energy Alliance, USOGA, IPAA, & Energy Workforce & Technology Council:

“The Senate has a historic chance to set the country and the economy back on the right course. The Spur Permitting of Underdeveloped Resources (SPUR) Act would help get Americans back to work on vital infrastructure projects while making the country more energy secure. Our trade associations strongly support the bill as it would clarify when and how permitting and environmental analysis are to be conducted and limit the ability of unaccountable groups to sow uncertainty and put at risk billions of dollars of investment.”

American Exploration and Mining Association Executive Director, Mark Compton:

“The American Exploration & Mining Association (AEMA) wishes to express our gratitude for your leadership in developing the common-sense, comprehensive reforms contained in the Spur Permitting of Underdeveloped Resources Act (SPUR Act) to help secure our mineral supply chains, improve the competitiveness of U.S. industries across our economy, and meet our nation’s challenges in an environmentally responsible and just manner… We believe the SPUR Act will strengthen our ability to responsibly produce the minerals needed for our national and economic security.

National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) President, Erik Milito:

“NOIA thanks Senators Barrasso and Capito for pursuing robust legislative certainty for American offshore energy production. The U.S. Gulf of Mexico is an enduring source of affordable, reliable, and environmentally responsible energy. These bills take critical steps to codify an annual minimum of two Gulf lease sales and tighten key permitting timelines, and would be a significant step toward bolstering energy security for Americans at home and for our allies abroad. Supporting Gulf of Mexico energy production and our energy workers throughout the country is in our national interest and should always be a bipartisan priority.”

National Mining Association (NMA) President & CEO, Rich Nolan:

“Senators Barrasso and Capito have long been champions for commonsense solutions to fix the broken permitting and environmental review processes that have hampered access to our natural resources and imperiled our supply chains; this week they have introduced two pieces of legislation that can meaningfully improve both and place the U.S. firmly back on competitive footing. Over the past year, we have seen Congress and the Biden administration signal support for further development of stable mineral supply chains on which our national security, economy and energy future rely, through tax incentives, loan programs and grants. But if we can’t get a mine permitted, the money is irrelevant. Serious mine permitting reforms are sorely needed, and we applaud Sens. Barrasso and Capito for leading the way.”

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Senior Vice President of Policy, Marty Durbin:

“We applaud Senators Capito and Barrasso for introducing legislation to provide meaningful reforms to our broken permitting process. Their bills would bring greater predictability, efficiency, and transparency to the process by establishing clear timelines and codifying important reforms. Reforms included in these bills would help us build robust supply chains for critical minerals used in everything from electric vehicles to cell phones, ensure adequate supplies of natural gas to support the on-going energy transition, and build better transportation infrastructure to move people and goods more efficiently. This is another important step to propel momentum toward Congress enacting permitting reform this year, and we look forward to working with both senators.”

Women’s Mining Coalition, President Emily Hendrickson & Manager Wanda Burget:

“The Women’s Mining Coalition (WMC) thanks you for your leadership in introducing the Spur Permitting for Underdeveloped Resources Act (the SPUR Act), S. 1456. As you and your numerous cosponsors have recognized, permitting delays are harming every aspect of our economy and threaten our energy and national security. The SPUR Act effectively addresses the urgent need to streamline the permitting process.

The SPUR Act would eliminate the significant barriers that the protracted, costly, and uncertain federal permitting process currently creates. As you know, the burdensome permitting process is thwarting the timely development of U.S. mineral, coal, oil, and gas resources and has curtailed our ability to build new transmission lines and other types of infrastructure projects. Without solving the permitting problem, the country’s 2030 and 2050 energy transition deadlines to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are unachievable and completely unrealistic.”

America First Policy Institute, Chair of the Center for American Freedom and former Secretary of the Interior, David Bernhardt:

“Senator Barrasso and Senator Capito’s common sense legislation would help reform the broken bureaucratic permitting process that is stifling American innovation, businesses, and consumers. Extreme environmental activists within the leviathan bureaucracy are holding the American economy hostage by killing off critical infrastructure projects with an endless sea of litigation and job-killing red tape. This vital legislation would help to unleash American energy and lower prices for hardworking Americans who are being crushed by the Biden Administration’s war on American energy.”

National Association of Manufacturers, President and CEO Jay Timmons:

“On behalf of the 13 million men and women who make things in America, the National Association of Manufacturers commends you for introducing the RESTART and SPUR Acts, commonsense bills that reform our out-of-date permitting laws and procedures. America’s success and leadership in the world depend on a strong, competitive manufacturing industry, and permitting reform is essential for manufacturers in the U.S. to compete in a global economy.”

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