Improving the Federal Review and Permitting Processes

The document identifies that while the U.S. needs a three- to four-fold increase in transmission capacity over 30 years, deployment is hindered by federal leadership gaps, insufficient agency staffing, and uncoordinated requirements across federal, state, and Tribal jurisdictions. Quantitative analysis of 33 completed transmission lines shows an average EIS review length of 4.3 years. The author recommends consolidating siting authority under FERC for projects in the national interest, expanding the use of programmatic environmental impact statements, and utilizing the Permitting Dashboard for greater transparency.

• Quantitative analysis of 33 completed transmission lines that required an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) between 2010 and 2020 revealed an average review length of 4.3 years, with a median of 3.7 years and a range from 1 to 11 years.
• The primary drivers of transmission permitting delays are process- and resource-oriented rather than inherent to the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). These include leadership gaps, inconsistent funding, a lack of permitting expertise in Washington, D.C. and field offices, and poor federal coordination.
• Interjurisdictional misalignment adds time and cost to projects, as developers must navigate uncoordinated or duplicative requirements from federal, state, and Tribal governments, often compounded by staffing constraints at the state and Tribal levels.
• There is a significant gap between current transmission investment and future needs; while some estimates suggest annual investment requirements will exceed $40 billion by 2031, the U.S. experienced overall decreases in annual transmission investment for large powerlines between 2010 and 2020.
• The current National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors (NIETC) process risks creating duplicative environmental reviews because DOE must conduct a NEPA analysis for each corridor, which may then trigger another review if FERC exercises siting authority.

APA

Pavia, N. (2025). Improving the Federal Review and Permitting Processes. Clean Air Task Force. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/19115142/catf-senate-epw-permitting-reform-testimony.pdf

Chicago

Pavia, Nicole. Improving the Federal Review and Permitting Processes. Clean Air Task Force, 2025. https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/19115142/catf-senate-epw-permitting-reform-testimony.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Pavia |first1=Nicole |title=Improving the Federal Review and Permitting Processes |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=19 February 2025 |url=https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/19115142/catf-senate-epw-permitting-reform-testimony.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{pavia2025improving, author = {Pavia, Nicole}, title = {{Improving the Federal Review and Permitting Processes}}, publisher = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://cdn.catf.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/19115142/catf-senate-epw-permitting-reform-testimony.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }