[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8784 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8784

To require each agency to evaluate the permitting system of the agency, 
to consider whether a permit by rule could replace that system, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 18, 2024

    Ms. Maloy (for herself, Mrs. Chavez-DeRemer, Mr. Newhouse, Mrs. 
 Peltola, Mr. LaTurner, Mr. Pfluger, Mr. Fong, Mr. Curtis, Mr. Gosar, 
Mr. Stauber, Mr. Arrington, Mr. Moore of Utah, Mrs. Fischbach, and Mr. 
    Zinke) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
               Committee on Oversight and Accountability

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require each agency to evaluate the permitting system of the agency, 
to consider whether a permit by rule could replace that system, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Full Responsibility and Expedited 
Enforcement Act'' or the ``FREE Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Agencies near unanimously operate under a permitting 
        system that gives agencies broad discretion and requires the 
        Government to review each permitting application.
            (2) Agencies near unanimously operate under a permitting 
        system that either does not have time constraints, or has time 
        constraints that agencies do not follow.
            (3) The combination of broad discretion and the lack of 
        time constraints often results in a tedious, time consuming, 
        and often expensive permitting system for the Government and 
        applicants. Moreover, agencies will sometimes use their 
        discretion and the time consuming nature of permitting to stall 
        or discourage permit issuance.
            (4) There is a compelling interest in avoiding unnecessary 
        delay and expense in Federal permitting.
            (5) Permit by rule is a process that seeks to overcome 
        agency delay and the cumbersome cost of agency review to 
        Government and private interests.
            (6) Permit by rule is a process of permitting that includes 
        specific written standards for obtaining a permit, a simple 
        requirement for an applicant to certify compliance with each of 
        the standards, and a streamlined approval of a maximum of 30 
        days that only allows the Government to verify that all 
        conditions are met. The Government retains the right and 
        responsibility to audit and enforce compliance with permitting 
        requirements. Focusing upon permittees who are violating the 
        law or standards rather than gatekeeping will make permitting 
        more efficient while allowing an agency to protect the 
        compelling interests for which permitting systems are intended.

SEC. 3. PERMIT BY RULE.

    (a) Report to Congress Required.--Not later than 240 days after the 
date of the enactment of this section, the head of each agency shall 
submit to Congress a report on the following:
            (1) An evaluation of each permit of the agency.
            (2) A list and description of each permit issued by the 
        agency.
            (3) The requirements for obtaining each such permit.
            (4) A specific description of each step the agency follows 
        to review a permit application, including a list of the job 
        title of each employee of the agency involved in the system and 
        a short job description for each such title.
            (5) An estimate of the time the agency typically requires 
        to review an application that begins on the date on which an 
        application is submitted and ends on the date on which a 
        successful application is granted.
            (6) A description of each action taken for a case in which 
        an application is found to not meet the necessary requirements 
        to be granted a permit.
            (7) A list of primary interests that each permit is 
        intended to protect.
            (8) An individual determination for each such permit that 
        describes whether a permit by rule could replace the permitting 
        system.
            (9) An identification of each permit issued by the agency 
        that could use a permit by rule.
            (10) An identification of each permit for which the head of 
        the agency has determined the agency could not reasonably use a 
        permit by rule, including a description with particularity and 
        detail the reasons why permit by rule could not be reasonably 
        used for each such permit.
            (11) An identification of any challenges the head of the 
        agency anticipates in a transition to a permit by rule.
    (b) Permit by Rule.--
            (1) Automatic approval of permits.--Not later than 12 
        months after the date on which the report is submitted pursuant 
        to subsection (a), the head of each agency shall establish a 
        permit by rule application process that does the following:
                    (A) Specified in writing each requirement and 
                substantive standard that must be met by an applicant 
                to file under a permit by rule.
                    (B) Allows an applicant to submit an application 
                that contains only each required certification for each 
                requirement or substantive standard established under 
                subparagraph (A).
                    (C) Deems an application for a permit granted if--
                            (i) the application contains each 
                        certification described in subparagraph (B); 
                        and
                            (ii) a period of 30 days after the date on 
                        which the completed application was submitted 
                        has expired.
            (2) Correction of application.--The head of an agency may 
        contact an applicant if any certification is missing from an 
        application submitted under paragraph (1).
            (3) Denial of application and enforcement.--
                    (A) Reason for denial.--The head of an agency may 
                only deny an application submitted under a permit by 
                rule if the head of the agency identifies a requirement 
                or substantive standard described in paragraph (1)(A) 
                that was not met and states with particularity the 
                facts and reasoning for such denial.
                    (B) Audit and enforcement.--
                            (i) Audit.--The head of an agency may audit 
                        an application and verify compliance with 
                        substantive standards, which may include 
                        reasonable requests for documentation.
                            (ii) Enforcement.--The head of an agency 
                        may deny an application submitted under a 
                        permit by rule at any time or halt permitted 
                        action if the head of the agency finds that a 
                        substantive standard is not being met.
                    (C) Direct appeal.--An applicant whose application 
                for a permit by rule is denied or whose action under a 
                permit issued under a permit by rule is halted may 
                appeal such denial or halting in an appropriate United 
                States district court.
                    (D) Reasonable interpretation of substantive 
                standards.--In an appeal under subparagraph (C), the 
                court shall consider an applicant that had a reasonable 
                interpretation of a substantive standard, and made a 
                good faith effort to comply with such standard pursuant 
                to such reasonable interpretation, to have met such 
                standard.
                    (E) Burden of proof.--In an appeal under 
                subparagraph (C), the agency shall bear the burden of 
                proof to show that an applicant's interpretation was 
                not reasonable and that their effort to comply was not 
                in good faith.
                    (F) Interpretation.--A court shall interpret an 
                agency rule for a permit by rule in a manner that 
                favors the applicant if the applicant made a good faith 
                effort to comply with the requirements of the permit by 
                rule.
                    (G) Attorney fees; permit granted.--If the court 
                finds for the applicant under this paragraph, the 
                agency shall pay the attorney fees of the applicant and 
                the permit shall is deemed granted.
    (c) Permit by Rule Required.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than the date on which the 
        report is submitted pursuant to subsection (a), the head of 
        each agency shall issue a permit by rule for any permit 
        identified in subsection (a)(9).
            (2) Qualifying applicants.--Not later than 90 days after 
        the date of the enactment of this section, the head of each 
        agency shall provide a permit by rule option for any applicant 
        for a permit that fits within the description of the activities 
        that are approved for permit by rule.
    (d) Restrictions on Agency Settlement Agreements.--The head of an 
agency may not enter into a settlement agreement with an applicant 
under subsection (b) in which the agency agrees to not enforce this 
Act, any regulation promulgated under this Act, or any permitting 
requirement for a permit by rule established under this Act against 
such applicant.
    (e) Congressional Oversight.--Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the head of each agency shall submit 
to Congress a report on the progress of the agency in transitioning to 
and implementing each permit for which permit by rule is implemented 
under this Act.
    (f) Maintenance of Previous Permitting System.--
            (1) Concurrent use of previous permitting system.--If the 
        head of agency determines that the permitting system in effect 
        before the date of the enactment of this Act provides value 
        that the permit by rule does not, and a permit by rule is 
        otherwise viable, the head of the agency may offer both the 
        permitting system and the permit by rule, and the applicant may 
        choose which to use, if the head of the agency includes the 
        value such permitting system has that a permit by rule does not 
        in the report required pursuant to subsection (a).
            (2) Preference for permit by rule.--If an agency determines 
        that permit by rule is viable, yet wishes to maintain only one 
        permitting system, the agency shall choose permit by rule.
            (3) Previous permitting system instead of permit by rule.--
        The head of an agency may continue to use a permitting system 
        instead of a permit by rule if the head of the agency includes 
        in the report described in subsection (a) the reasons a permit 
        by rule is not viable.
    (g) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Agency; rule.--The terms ``agency'' and ``rule'' have 
        the meaning given those terms in section 551 of title 5, United 
        States Code.
            (2) Completed application.--The term ``completed 
        application'' means an application submitted under subsection 
        (b) that contains an application with certifications that the 
        applicant meets each requirement and substantive standard 
        established under subsection (b)(1)(A).
            (3) Permit by rule.--The term ``permit by rule'' means the 
        permitting process described under subsection (b).
            (4) Substantive standard.--The term ``substantive 
        standard'' means all qualities, statuses, actions, benchmarks, 
        measurements, or other written descriptions that would qualify 
        a party to perform the permitted action.
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