Latest news with #permitting
E&E News
6 days ago
- Business
- E&E News
Westerman, Golden unveil NEPA overhaul package
House Natural Resources Chair Bruce Westerman on Friday released sweeping legislation to change the National Environmental Policy Act review process. The 'Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act,' co-sponsored by moderate Democratic Rep. Jared Golden of Maine, is a starting point in broader talks between the parties and the chambers toward a bipartisan permitting deal. 'America's model of successful environmental stewardship alongside strong economic growth is being hobbled by a more than half-century old permitting process that is overdue for a tuneup,' Westerman said in a statement. Advertisement 'Although well-intentioned, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) has not kept up with the times which is bad for both our environment and our economy,' he said.
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Newsom Proposes to Ease Permits for Oil Drilling in California
(Bloomberg) -- California Governor Gavin Newsom is proposing a bill to streamline permitting for new oil wells that environmental groups say would wipe out scrutiny of the industry. The Dutch Intersection Is Coming to Save Your Life Mumbai Facelift Is Inspired by 200-Year-Old New York Blueprint Advocates Fear US Agents Are Using 'Wellness Checks' on Children as a Prelude to Arrests LA Homelessness Drops for Second Year Manhattan, Chicago Murder Rates Drop in 2025, Officials Say The bill would establish 'plug-to-drill' permitting until 2036 where two wells would have to be plugged and abandoned before a new one is drilled. In addition, drillers no longer would need well approval from the Geologic Energy Management Division, known as CalGem, so long as certain conditions are met. Shares of in-state drillers climbed on the news, with California Resources Corporation jumping 4.8% and Berry Corp. up 6.9%. The draft bill text — seen by Bloomberg News and portions of which were leaked by environmental groups — is the latest in a series of recent shifts Newsom has made in approaching the oil and gas industry after years of regulatory scrutiny. The governor is softening his stance toward the industry this year after refineries operated by Phillips 66 and Valero Energy Corp. decided to shut operations in the state and California's legislature placed a greater emphasis on reducing costs of living for the state's 40 million residents. A spokesperson for the governor said environmental groups are circulating only partial text from the bill. 'We continue to work with the legislature on policy that will help stabilize California's petroleum market while ensuring a safe, reliable, and affordable supply of transportation fuels,' the governor's office said in a statement. In a statement accompanying their leaked text from the bill, 12 environmental justice groups said the proposal amounts to a blank check for unlimited drilling across the state for the next decade. (Adds share price reaction in the third paragraph.) What the Tough Job Market for New College Grads Says About the Economy A Rebel Army Is Building a Rare-Earth Empire on China's Border Godzilla Conquered Japan. Now Its Owner Plots a Global Takeover How Starbucks' CEO Plans to Tame the Rush-Hour Free-for-All Why Access to Running Water Is a Luxury in Wealthy US Cities ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Newsom Proposes to Ease Permits for Oil Drilling in California
(Bloomberg) -- California Governor Gavin Newsom is proposing a bill to streamline permitting for new oil wells that environmental groups say would wipe out scrutiny of the industry. The Dutch Intersection Is Coming to Save Your Life Mumbai Facelift Is Inspired by 200-Year-Old New York Blueprint Advocates Fear US Agents Are Using 'Wellness Checks' on Children as a Prelude to Arrests LA Homelessness Drops for Second Year Manhattan, Chicago Murder Rates Drop in 2025, Officials Say The bill would establish 'plug-to-drill' permitting until 2036 where two wells would have to be plugged and abandoned before a new one is drilled. In addition, drillers no longer would need well approval from the Geologic Energy Management Division, known as CalGem, so long as certain conditions are met. Shares of in-state drillers climbed on the news, with California Resources Corporation jumping 4.8% and Berry Corp. up 6.9%. The draft bill text — seen by Bloomberg News and portions of which were leaked by environmental groups — is the latest in a series of recent shifts Newsom has made in approaching the oil and gas industry after years of regulatory scrutiny. The governor is softening his stance toward the industry this year after refineries operated by Phillips 66 and Valero Energy Corp. decided to shut operations in the state and California's legislature placed a greater emphasis on reducing costs of living for the state's 40 million residents. A spokesperson for the governor said environmental groups are circulating only partial text from the bill. 'We continue to work with the legislature on policy that will help stabilize California's petroleum market while ensuring a safe, reliable, and affordable supply of transportation fuels,' the governor's office said in a statement. In a statement accompanying their leaked text from the bill, 12 environmental justice groups said the proposal amounts to a blank check for unlimited drilling across the state for the next decade. (Adds share price reaction in the third paragraph.) What the Tough Job Market for New College Grads Says About the Economy A Rebel Army Is Building a Rare-Earth Empire on China's Border Godzilla Conquered Japan. Now Its Owner Plots a Global Takeover How Starbucks' CEO Plans to Tame the Rush-Hour Free-for-All Why Access to Running Water Is a Luxury in Wealthy US Cities ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Bloomberg
18-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Newsom Proposes to Ease Permits for Oil Drilling in California
California Governor Gavin Newsom is proposing a bill to streamline permitting for new oil wells that environmental groups say would wipe out scrutiny of the industry. The bill would establish 'plug-to-drill' permitting until 2036 where two wells would have to be plugged and abandoned before a new one is drilled. In addition, drillers no longer would need well approval from the Geologic Energy Management Division, known as CalGem, so long as certain conditions are met.
Forbes
15-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Dallas Shows Why Building Housing Has Become So Hard
A new home being built just outside Dallas, Texas. Builders in the city have faced numerous problems ... More with the permitting agency. The city of Dallas purchased a building to act as a 'one-stop shop' for its permitting agency. More than $29 million was spent on the purchase and upgrades. But just weeks after city staff moved in, they moved right back out because their new offices failed the permitting process. After spending another year trying to get the building in compliance, the city gave up in April and announced that it would sell the property. Instead of opening up a physical single location to apply for permits, the city concentrated its efforts on a new online platform it rolled out in May. All of this comes after years of embarrassing failures that have made it impossible for some builders to rely on the city's approval of plans to actually build a home that follows all of the city's rules. Builders' Permits Revoked Danny Le knows those failures firsthand. He broke ground on a duplex in the city's Elm Thicket neighborhood after the city approved his plans in 2023. Danny isn't a big builder. He planned to live in one of the units and rent the other one out. But the city issued a stop work order for his project and 18 others last summer when permitting staff discovered that it had accidentally approved projects that were not compliant with a recent change in the code. In 2022, as it turned out, the city had downzoned Elm Thicket, making it harder to add needed housing like duplexes. But nobody told Danny—probably because officials in the Dallas Planning Department didn't even know themselves. For months, Danny's duplex sat open to the elements as he struggled to get the project back on track. He found attorneys to help him and worked to get a variance to the rules. Even after that, he had to deal with a lawsuit a resident filed against the city for granting him the variance. Danny persevered and today the open unit in his duplex is for sale. Another builder ran into a similar problem but had to go to court to keep from having to tear down a home that was finished. Just like Danny, the city approved the plans and then later determined that it was too tall for the neighborhood by a few feet. The builder fought all the way to the Texas Supreme Court, which ruled for him. During the six-year-long legal battle the home sat empty since the builder could not get an occupancy permit from the city. Taxpayers have also had to foot the bill for the office's mistakes. Earlier this year, the permitting department admitted that it had to forgo $8.6 million in fees because staff made an error in how much it was charging for remodeling permits. It's Not Just Hard to Build in Dallas Dallas's errors have been obvious and comical, but building homes isn't necessarily easier in American cities where permitting offices don't make glaring mistakes. The rules are complicated all over. Zoning doesn't operate like it does in the classic game Sim City, where the player simply chooses between commercial, industrial, or residential zones. Cities have all manner of sub-zones with requirements for minimum home size, required setbacks, and sometimes even purely aesthetic requirements. For instance, Des Moines created a new zoning code in 2019 with different design requirements for different areas of the city. Last year, it was reported that builders had asked the city to relax some of those rules so that more low- to middle-income residents could afford homes. Developers also complained that the complexity of the rules had slowed the approval process. When neighbors get involved, the process can become quite arbitrary. Outside Atlanta, Monica Crim purchased a property for what she called her 'dream house.' The city approved her permits and the state environmental agency said the home would not negatively affect the environment. But a local homeowners' association (which owns a private lake) convinced a zoning board that the application didn't meet the stream buffer guidelines. Excavating Through the Rulebook The rules governing home construction have formed over decades like sedimentary rock. Government employees have to metaphorically dig through the layers each time they get an application. The thicker the rulebook, the more chance that they will make a mistake. And the rule keepers rarely suffer from their mistakes. Instead, developers and home buyers bear the costs. The National Association of Home Builders estimates that regulations account for almost one-quarter of the cost of a new single family home. New homes should be safe, for the occupants and neighbors. But many of the rules aren't about safety anymore. One-stop online shops, like the one in Dallas, might be an improvement over having to drive paperwork to the bureaucrats, but the real problem is that the rules aren't simple enough for even sophisticated developers to understand. Part of solving the housing crisis has to be making permitting more straightforward.
