When it comes to meeting America’s growing energy needs, the biggest obstacle is not the availability of fuels or the technology but the permitting bottleneck. We can’t build fast enough to meet the growing demand from households and businesses — all while preserving clean air, water, and land. Congress has introduced several bills to address the litany of permitting challenges, and one deserves serious attention: the PERMIT Act. 

Introduced by Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), the legislation offers targeted reforms to how we review and approve infrastructure and, in doing so, advances three vital goals simultaneously: helping to keep energy affordable, improving reliability, and protecting the environment.

Americans are rightly worried about energy bills, blackouts, and what happens when extreme weather hits. Growing power demand underscores the need for additional generation, pipelines, transmission upgrades, and new build, all of which require siting approvals and environmental reviews. However, if the system remains bogged down in red tape or legal limbo, then projects get delayed, costs go up—and the consumer pays. The PERMIT Act steps in by saying: let’s keep the environmental safeguards, yes, but let’s also fix the process so that the system works.

Some of the significant features of the PERMIT Act include:

• Reforming the Clean Water Act (CWA) permitting process for specific types of infrastructure by establishing clearer timelines, judicial review clarity, enhancing coordination, and increasing regulatory certainty.
• Preventing the Environmental Protection Agency from issuing preemptive and retroactive vetoes for 404 dredge and fill permits issued by the Army Corps of Engineers. This will provide greater certainty for projects moving forward. 
• Reforming the CWA’s 401 certification process by giving states a voice in issuing federal CWA permits. States have sometimes misused this authority to block energy projects they oppose, such as natural gas pipelines or a liquefied natural gas export terminal. However, the state blocking the project often does so not on water quality grounds, but on issues related to climate change or train noise—matters outside the scope of the 401-certification process. The bill rightly narrows the scope of the 401-certification process while maintaining the goal of cooperative federalism. 
• Extending the duration of certain nationwide permits (for example, those under Section 404) from 5 to 10 years, thereby lowering renewal risk and supporting more stable infrastructure planning.
• Providing greater clarity about “waters of the United States” and setting forth standards so that permit‑seekers know what they face, reducing the chance of surprise delays.
• Imposing certification conditions: before specific provisions take effect, the Environmental Protection Agency must determine that the reforms will *not* increase sewer overflows, stormwater discharges, or flooding risks.

By streamlining review processes and reducing uncertainty, the PERMIT Act lowers the significant costs associated with project delays. Costs increase when waiting for permits, when initial financing is stalled, and when the regulatory process is unclear. Reducing those costs allows infrastructure—such as transmission lines, pipelines, or new generation—to come online more quickly and at less expense. This results in lower costs for consumers. 

Importantly, CWA reforms are necessary not only for energy developers but also for many vital sectors of the American economy. Strengthening the CWA will benefit farmers, homebuilders, and manufacturers of all kinds.  American households will benefit from a more reliable grid and more resilient infrastructure. 

The PERMIT Act maintains the core Clean Water Act framework, extends specific review periods (which give permit applicants more certainty), and requires that reforms only move forward if they are certified not to increase pollution risks. The key environmental protections remain in place—but policy updates reduce procedural hurdles and offer greater clarity for projects. In that way, it’s a win-win: a more efficient process, not weaker protections. For a nation facing urgent energy challenges, this kind of practical fix is what America needs to get back to building. 

The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.