This post originally appeared at Green Tape.
State legislative season is in full swing, and it’s shaping up to be an exciting year for permitting reform. I’ve been amazed by how widely FAI’s State Permitting Playbook has circulated, and it has been a real joy to support legislators, governors, and their teams as they look to make it easier for their states to build.
I certainly do not have my finger on the pulse of every state—but the following all stand out as major opportunity areas.
Utah
A big win is already on the board thanks to Governor Cox’s Executive Order—his first of the year—which directs Utah's environmental agencies to expand the use of streamlined permitting processes. The order requires both DEQ and the Division of Oil, Gas and Mining to identify new opportunities for permit-by-rule and general permitting while also improving the process for plantwide applicability limitation (PAL) permits. For an explanation of how these different flexible permits work, head on over to the State Permitting Playbook.
Also coming out of Utah is HB85, sponsored by Rep. Tyler Clancy. Rep. Clancy is a very impressive young legislator—I'm convinced he'll be a member of Congress in the not too distant future—and his bill provides crucial statutory authority for the Governor’s reforms, in addition to more specificity and direction around permit-by-rule categories and PAL rules.
