House Approves Measure to Fast Track Interstate Gas Pipeline Permitting

The House of Representatives approved legislation on Friday intended to compress federal permitting timelines for interstate natural gas pipelines by designating the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as the lead federal agency coordinating environmental reviews and agency actions. H.R. 3668, the Improving Interagency Coordination for Pipeline Reviews Act, sponsored by Representative Richard Hudson of North Carolina, passed by a 213 to 184 vote, according to E&E News and POLITICO.

Under the bill’s framework, participating federal and state agencies would be required to follow schedules established by FERC and to conduct their reviews concurrently and in conjunction with FERC’s project related review under the National Environmental Policy Act. Sponsors frame the measure as a procedural fix to reduce what they call unnecessary delays that hinder the construction of energy infrastructure and raise costs for consumers.

Representative Hudson argued on the House floor that the bill “would guarantee we protect the environment, ensure we protect public health and lower energy costs,” a claim supporters use to fuse infrastructure acceleration with environmental and public health stewardship. Representative Julie Fedorchak who supported the measure said in a press release that the law would “modernize the federal permitting process for interstate natural gas pipelines and strengthen American energy security” and that “to keep the lights on, our showers hot, and prices affordable, we need more pipelines in our country. The federal government shouldn’t stand in the way of building this critical infrastructure with endless bureaucracy. This legislation strengthens FERC’s lead role and brings the coordination needed to speed up pipeline reviews so we can keep energy reliable, affordable, and made in America.”

Democrats and environmental advocates countered that the centralized schedule and FERC led coordination would erode long standing environmental safeguards and curtail state authority over permitting. Critics warned the measure could narrow water protections and limit the ability of states and local communities to scrutinize projects that have direct consequences for drinking water, air quality, and public safety. They also voiced concern that compressing NEPA timelines and synchronizing multiple agency reviews behind a single schedule could reduce windows for public participation and for agencies to fully assess cumulative impacts on frontline communities and vulnerable populations.

Public health experts and environmental justice advocates have increasingly pointed to the links between fossil fuel infrastructure and outcomes ranging from respiratory illness to risks from leaks and incidents, especially in communities already burdened by pollution and limited health care access. Expedited permitting that reduces procedural safeguards or truncates review periods could intensify these risks, advocates say.

The bill’s text and supporting materials, as summarized by reporters, outline the coordination mechanisms but do not specify how the measure would alter judicial review of agency decisions or change specific statutes beyond the NEPA coordination language. The measure now moves to the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain in the face of opposition that frames the debate as one between energy reliability and environmental and community protections.