Prevention of administrative abuse of Federal permitting of low-cost, clean energy

(a) Requirement for parity The Council on Environmental Quality, in consultation with all applicable Federal agencies, shall ensure, via subsection (b), that the processing of applications, authorizations, or related approvals as well as denials and the activities referenced in subsection (g) for wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission projects on Federal and non-Federal land and waters is not subject to more restrictive or burdensome procedural requirements than those applied to applications for oil, gas, or coal projects on Federal and non-Federal land and waters and does not bias Federal decision making in favor of oil, gas, or coal projects, including— (1) requirements for elevated or discretionary review by the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, other political appointees, or career employees; (2) additional documentation or review not required for oil, gas, or coal projects; (3) withholding, delaying, or reversing decisions by local or regional entities for wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission projects for reasons not applied to oil, gas or coal projects; and (4) denial of routine administrative approvals, such as testing permits or cost recovery agreements, or notices to proceed once all criteria have been met for approval, based on underlying technology. (b) Policy review (1) Review Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this section, the Council on Environmental Quality, in consultation with all applicable Federal agencies, shall— (A) review all applicable regulations, guidance documents, policy manuals, departmental directives, Secretarial orders, and other procedures regarding energy development; and (B) identify any provision of such regulations, documents, manuals, directives, orders, and procedures not otherwise required in statute that do not comply with the requirements in subsection (a). (2) Rescission Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this section, the applicable Secretary or Administrator shall rescind or amend as necessary any provision identified under subsection (a). (c) Accountability in permitting Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section and annually thereafter, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report on actions taken by all applicable Federal agencies related to permitting for energy projects, which shall include— (1) an analysis of the procedures used by all applicable Federal agencies for processing applications, authorizations, or approvals for wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission projects on Federal and non-Federal land and waters and how those procedures compare to those used for oil, gas, or coal projects; (2) an analysis of the number of days applicable Federal agencies took during the previous calendar year to process applications, authorizations or approvals for wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission projects on Federal and non-Federal land and waters compared to the number of days to process applications, authorizations or approvals for oil, gas, or coal projects; and (3) an assessment of whether applicable Federal agencies treated wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission projects the same as oil, gas, or coal projects during the previous calendar year. (d) Ensuring energy security (1) Limitation on issuance of certain approvals Beginning on the date of enactment of this Act— (A) the Secretary of the Interior may not approve a permit to extract coal or to drill on an onshore oil or gas lease on Federal land unless an approval for onshore wind or solar development has been issued during the 120-day period ending on the date of the issuance of the approval for oil or gas development; and (B) the Secretary of the Interior may not approve a permit to drill on an offshore oil or gas lease on the Outer Continental Shelf under section 2(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331(a)) unless an approval for offshore wind development on the Outer Continental Shelf of similar scope has been issued during the 120-day period ending on the date of the issuance of the approval for oil or gas development. (2) Rules of construction Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the Secretary to approve applications for a permit to drill for onshore or offshore oil or gas development or a permit to extract coal. (e) Timely Federal review (1) Deadlines to complete environmental reviews under NEPA With respect to any proposed wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission development on Federal land or waters, including the Outer Continental Shelf, requiring an environmental impact statement or environmental assessment pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Secretary shall complete such environmental impact statement or environmental assessment within the deadlines established under section 107(g) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4336a(g)). (2) Deadline for determination of right-of-way Not later than 180 days after completion of the environmental impact statement or environmental assessment, as applicable, for wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission development on Federal land or waters, including the Outer Continental Shelf, the Secretary shall issue a right-of-way, except in the event that a no action alternative is selected. (f) Judicial review (1) Reviewability (A) In general If a Federal agency suspends construction or operations of a wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission project, or otherwise prevents a wind, solar, storage, or related electric transmission project from commencing and completing construction, operation, or related ancillary activities, including by revoking, rescinding, withdrawing, terminating, suspending, amending, altering, or otherwise rendering ineffective any authorization for a project or the final environmental document the authorization relies on, shall be considered final agency action subject to judicial review under chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code. (B) Venue A person seeking judicial review for an action described in subparagraph (A) shall obtain review of such action in the United States Court of Appeals for any circuit wherein the project is located. (2) Timing For any claim brought regarding an action in paragraph (A), the court of competent jurisdiction shall issue a decision for such challenge— (A) as expeditiously as practicable; and (B) not later than the date that is 30 days after the date on which the civil action is filed, unless the court determines that additional time is required in the interests of justice. (3) Applicability This section shall apply to any actions in paragraph (1) that occurred after January 19, 2025. (g) Ensuring fairness on Federal lands and waters (1) FLPMA amendments The Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 is amended— (A) in section 103(c) (43 U.S.C. 1702(c)), by striking historical values; and inserting historical values, including the generation, transmission, and storage of renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and geothermal energy;; and (B) in section 302 (43 U.S.C. 1732), by inserting at the end (e) The Secretary shall manage the public lands to facilitate the generation, transmission, and storage of renewable energy resources, consistent with the principles of multiple use and sustained yield under this Act. For the purposes of this Act, such activities are deemed to be consistent with multiple-use management.. (2) OCSLA amendments Section 8(p) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1337(p)) is amended by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the following: (4) Requirements The Secretary shall ensure that any activity under this subsection is carried out in a manner that provides for a balance of— (A) safety; (B) the protection of the environment; (C) the prevention of waste; (D) the conservation of the natural resources of the outer Continental Shelf; (E) coordination with relevant Federal agencies and Tribal, State, and local governments; (F) the protection of the national security interests of the United States, including energy security; (G) the protection of correlative rights in the outer Continental Shelf, including the energy generation potential of other offshore renewable energy leases; (H) a fair return to the United States for any lease, easement, or right-of-way under this subsection; (I) prevention of unreasonable interference with other uses of the exclusive economic zone, the high seas, and the territorial seas, as determined by the Secretary; (J) consideration of— (i) the location of, and any schedule relating to, a lease, easement, or right-of-way for an area of the outer Continental Shelf; and (ii) any other use of the sea or seabed, including use for a fishery or fishery survey, a sealane, a regional coastal observing system or other scientific observation platform such as a buoy, a potential site of a deepwater port, or navigation; (K) public notice and comment on any proposal submitted for a lease, easement, or right-of-way under this subsection; (L) the oversight, inspection, research, monitoring, and enforcement relating to a lease, easement, or right-of-way under this subsection; and (M) the consideration of any applicable Federal, Tribal, and State renewable energy mandates, targets, and goals..