[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 207 (Tuesday, December 9, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H5086-H5088]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1630
STUDYING NEPA'S IMPACT ON PROJECTS ACT
Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 573) to require the Council on Environmental Quality to publish
an annual report on environmental reviews and causes of action based on
alleged non-compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 573
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 ``Studying NEPA's Impact on
Projects Act''.
SEC. 2. ANNUAL REPORT ON NEPA'S IMPACT ON PROJECTS.
Section 201 of the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4341) is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 201. ANNUAL REPORTS ON NEPA'S IMPACT ON PROJECTS.
``(a) Submissions by Lead Agencies.--Not later than July 1,
2026, and annually thereafter,
[[Page H5087]]
the head of each lead agency shall submit to the Council on
Environmental Quality a report on--
``(1) each civil action alleging an agency action in
violation of this Act that was active during the period
beginning June 1 of the preceding year and ending June 1 of
the current year, which shall identify--
``(A) with respect to each such civil action--
``(i) the defendant lead agency, where applicable, and each
plaintiff; and
``(ii) the court in which the civil action was brought and
any court to which a decision on the civil action was
appealed;
``(B) the number of such civil actions, disaggregated by
the defendant agency, with a single entry denoting the lead
agency, where applicable, for cases involving multiple
Federal agency defendants;
``(C) the alleged basis for each such civil action,
disaggregated by covered sectors; and
``(D) the status and outcome, if applicable, of each civil
action alleging an agency action in violation of this Act
that was active during the period beginning June 1 of the
preceding year and ending June 1 of the current year,
including whether--
``(i) the civil action resulted in a decision to hold
unlawful and set aside the agency action within the meaning
of section 706(2) of title 5, United States Code;
``(ii) the civil action resulted in a decision allowing the
Federal agency to proceed with the major Federal action;
``(iii) the civil action resulted in an order remanding the
matter to the agency for reconsideration without vacating the
analysis;
``(iv) any claim under the civil action was resolved by a
settlement agreement or consent decree between any plaintiff
and the defendant lead agency;
``(v) the civil action is still active; and
``(vi) any of the plaintiffs received an award, including
an award of costs pursuant to section 2412 of title 28,
United States Code, except that if such information is
received after the lead agency submits the applicable report
to the Council on Environmental Quality, the lead agency
shall include such information in the subsequent report;
``(2) the length of environmental impact statements made
publicly available pursuant to section 102(2)(C) during the
period of 5 years that ends on June 1 of the current year,
which shall include--
``(A) the average and median page count of all such
environmental impact statements (not including the page count
of any citations or appendices), including such page counts
disaggregated by quartiles;
``(B) the average and median page count of any citations
and appendices included in such environmental impact
statements;
``(C) the number of such environmental impact statements,
disaggregated by lead agency and subagency as applicable;
``(D) a description of trends in average and median page
count of such environmental impact statements and any
citations and appendices included in such environmental
impact statements compared to prior reports published by the
Council on Environmental Quality; and
``(E) for each report submitted under this section through
2028, a disaggregation of the data from before and after the
date of the enactment of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of
2023;
``(3) an estimate of the cost to prepare the environmental
impact statements described in paragraph (2), including--
``(A) the full-time equivalent personnel hour costs,
contractor costs, and other direct costs of the lead agency
that prepared the environmental impact statement; and
``(B) if practicable, and noted where not practicable, the
costs incurred by cooperating agencies, participating
agencies, any project sponsor that prepared an environmental
impact statement under the supervision of the lead agency,
and contractors; and
``(4) the timelines to complete environmental impact
statements pursuant to section 102(2)(C) during the period of
10 years that ends on June 1 of the current year, which shall
include--
``(A) with respect to each major Federal action commenced
during such period of 10 years, the date on which (as
applicable)--
``(i) the project sponsor submitted an application for any
permit or other authorization for the project;
``(ii) the lead agency began the scoping;
``(iii) the notice of intent to prepare the environmental
impact statement was made publicly available;
``(iv) the environmental impact statement was made publicly
available;
``(v) the record of decision was made publicly available;
and
``(vi) the lead agency provided to the project sponsor
notice to proceed on the project;
``(B) the average and median completion timelines during
such period of 10 years for each document described in
subparagraph (A);
``(C) a description of trends in completion timelines
during such period of 10 years for such documents compared to
prior reports published by the Council on Environmental
Quality; and
``(D) for each report submitted under this section through
2033, a disaggregation of the data from before and after the
date of the enactment of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of
2023.
``(b) Publication and Submission of Reports by the Council
on Environmental Quality.--
``(1) In general.--The Council on Environmental Qualify
shall annually--
``(A) publish the reports received under subsection (a) on
the website of the Council on Environmental Quality; and
``(B) submit such reports to the Committee on Natural
Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee
on Environment and Public Works of the Senate.
``(2) Inclusion in other reports.--The Council on
Environmental Quality may carry out paragraph (1)(B) by
including the reports received under subsection (a) in the
report submitted under section 107(h).
``(3) Public availability of data.--The Council on
Environmental Quality shall publish with each report
published under paragraph (1)(A) the underlying data used to
prepare each such report and include any citations or other
information necessary for the public to locate records
related to the court proceedings for any civil action
described in subsection (a)(1).
``(c) Format.--To the extent practicable, the information
included in each report submitted to the Council on
Environmental Quality under subsection (a) shall be
disaggregated by covered sector.
``(d) Covered Sector Defined.--In this section, the term
`covered sector' means any of the following sectors:
``(1) Aviation and space.
``(2) Broadband.
``(3) Carbon capture and sequestration.
``(4) Conventional energy production.
``(5) Electricity transmission.
``(6) Forestry.
``(7) Information technology infrastructure.
``(8) Manufacturing.
``(9) Mining.
``(10) Pipelines.
``(11) Ports and waterways.
``(12) Renewable energy production.
``(13) Surface transportation.
``(14) Water resources.
``(15) Any other sector as determined by the Council on
Environmental Quality or lead agency.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Colorado (Mr. Crank) and the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Randall)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Colorado.
General Leave
Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
to include extraneous material on H.R. 573, the bill now under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Colorado?
There was no objection.
Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 573, which would
consolidate prior NEPA data collection and reporting efforts into a
single report published annually by the Council on Environmental
Quality, or CEQ. This bill ensures that consistent, transparent
permitting data is available and accessible to the public.
It is well known that our permitting system is mired with substantial
delays. Many of these issues stem from burdensome and lengthy
environmental documents and lawsuits instigated by special interest
groups.
In past administrations, CEQ has published reports on NEPA litigation
and environmental reviews. From 2001 to 2013, annual surveys recorded
the defendant agency, plaintiff category, and case results, showing
that special interest groups, not individual citizens or communities,
were responsible for the most NEPA cases.
Although these CEQ studies provided useful data on the cumbersome
review timelines and resource strains resulting from NEPA analysis,
they have either been produced ad hoc or attention to their continued
production has fallen by the wayside.
Similar to CEQ's annual litigation surveys conducted between 2001 and
2013, the reports required by this bill would include information
related to any NEPA-related civil action brought against an agency and
would identify the lead Federal agency, each plaintiff, and case
outcome. This information will allow Congress to identify who is suing
to block critical infrastructure projects and examine the end result of
the litigation on the project itself.
This bill would also build off the first Trump administration's NEPA
reports conducted in 2020 by directing CEQ to review the page length of
environmental impact statements and the timelines to complete such EIS,
with updates published annually. This information will give Congress
better insight into whether agencies are respecting the NEPA deadlines
and page limits created in the Fiscal Responsibility Act.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the lead sponsor of this legislation,
Representative Yakym, for his hard work on this bill, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Representative Yakym's
Studying NEPA's Impact on Projects Act. This legislation would direct
agencies to
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submit to the Council on Environmental Quality an annual report on NEPA
lawsuits filed, the basis for the legal claim, and the outcome, if
applicable.
I believe these reports will show there are far fewer NEPA lawsuits
holding up projects than my colleagues across the aisle sometimes argue
about, but regardless, this will be good data for decisionmakers to
have.
The bill would also require reporting on the time it takes agencies
to complete environmental impact statements and the number of pages of
those analyses. The Council on Environmental Quality will then report
annually on average lengths of time, page counts, and any directional
trends.
I appreciate the majority working with us to also include
requirements for disaggregating reporting to show page limits and
timelines pre- and post-passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act. This
law placed new limits on page counts and 2-year deadlines for
environmental impact statements. It will be important for us to know if
these new requirements are really working.
Mr. Speaker, again, I support this legislation, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
Indiana (Mr. Yakym), the lead sponsor of this bill.
Mr. YAKYM. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for the time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of my bipartisan bill, H.R.
573, the Studying NEPA's Impact on Projects Act, which I introduced
with my good friend, Mr. Panetta from California.
The National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA, was passed in 1970 to
look at the impacts of projects on the environment.
After decades of abuse and misuse, NEPA has strayed far from its
original purpose. Now, it is a four-letter word, often weaponized to
bury infrastructure, housing, energy, and other critical projects under
a mound of paperwork and litigation.
NEPA is more synonymous with red tape than a green light. One recent
study found that energy projects spend a median of 3 years from final
agency approval to a final court decision, with some projects facing
delays that last for decades.
At various points in time, the White House Council on Environmental
Quality, or CEQ, has compiled reports on lawsuits, paperwork, and
delays associated with NEPA, but these efforts have mostly been ad hoc.
This bill would formalize and consolidate these reports by requiring
the CEQ to publish a single annual report detailing the burdens created
by NEPA, including the volume of lawsuits, the length and complexity of
environmental review and paperwork, and the cost of delays to taxpayers
and project sponsors.
This report, coupled with the efforts of the Trump administration and
this Congress to rein in permitting burdens, will allow us to conduct
oversight, ensure accountability, and identify areas of further reform.
The consequences of NEPA are felt across this country, from
manufacturing and construction in my district to critical forest
management, mining, and housing projects. These delays impact our
economy, but they also constrain our efforts to achieve energy
dominance, protect our national security, and compete with China.
This bill is an important step in our work to continue reforming the
permitting process. It is time to get the government and unnecessary
barriers out of the way of hardworking Americans who want to make
America build again.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Westerman for his help in getting this
bill to the floor and to my friend, Mr. Panetta, for his partnership. I
urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.''
Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. Panetta).
Mr. PANETTA. Mr. Speaker, I rise as a co-lead of the Studying NEPA's
Impact on Projects Act.
As we have heard, this is a bill that would require the Council on
Environmental Quality to provide annual reports that evaluate the
efficiency and effectiveness of the Federal permitting process.
I thank Representative Yakym for his leadership on this issue and
really appreciate his willingness to work in a bipartisan fashion to
fix our government's permitting process. It is a process that, as we
know, can be bogged down, burdensome, and brutally bureaucratic,
leading to unnecessary delays that make it very difficult to increase
affordable housing, improve our infrastructure, and advance important
energy and transmission projects.
People in California's 19th Congressional District, as well as I am
sure people in the Second District of Indiana and communities all
across the country, have a great amount of concern and consternation as
the permitting process is stunting their will and ability to reduce
their carbon output, to solve the affordability crisis, and to decrease
the damage from natural disasters.
Requiring an annual report is a commonsensical and practical way to
use evidence to find the issue, fix the process, and affirm our energy
and environmental values. It is a first step--we get that--but we know
it is also a very big and impactful step so that, together, we can
implement our efforts to protect our planet, increase clean energy
options for our country, and reduce costs for communities.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``aye.''
{time} 1640
Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Ms. RANDALL. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this
legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, the Studying NEPA's Impact on Projects Act
will provide Congress with crucial information on NEPA litigation. It
will also provide transparency to help ensure that agencies comply with
the Fiscal Responsibility Act's NEPA deadlines and page limits.
I thank Mr. Yakym and Mr. Panetta for their work on this bill, and I
urge my colleagues to support the bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Crank) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 573, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________