Energy and Climate

Permitting for energy projects

45 public statements from 2026 candidates · 7 related bills

§1The range of views

Why this matters: Faster approvals can get energy projects built sooner and for less, while reviews and lawsuits give communities a way to raise concerns about land, water and health.

Drafted by AI, then checked for neutral wording in a separate AI review. It describes the question and the main positions, not any candidate's view. Facts link to their sources.

How long federal environmental reviews and permits take for projects such as pipelines, power lines and power plants, and how easily people can challenge them in court.

  1. Strengthen reviews and give nearby communities more say over projects
  2. Keep current review rules and rights to challenge projects in court
  3. Shorten reviews but keep current rights to challenge projects in court
  4. Shorten reviews and limit lawsuits against energy projects

These options describe policies, not people. The order is not a ranking.

§2What candidates have said

Why this matters: Statements candidates made publicly, summarized in plain words with a link to where they said it. Candidates who haven't spoken publicly on this issue aren't listed.

Drafted by AI from the public sources cited. Each sentence links to its source.

Strengthen reviews and give nearby communities more say over projects (2)

  • Tia LeBrun LA-3
    Her campaign website's Policy Plans page says it would require meaningful local input before major industrial projects are approved, strengthen environmental review processes and increase transparency about project risks.1
  • LaVeta Davenport MI-1
    The Green Party of Michigan 2026 platform text on her campaign website, which says she fully aligns with it, calls for giving local voters more say in whether large energy projects are built in their communities.2

Statements that don't match one option (43)

  • Mary Peltola AK Senate
    Her campaign website says she would pass permitting reform to speed up approval of Alaska energy projects.3
  • Nick Begich AK-AL
    His campaign website says he helped pass the SPEED Act in the House to modernize federal permitting, set clearer timelines and reduce delays.4
  • Jeff Wadlin AR Senate
    His campaign website says reasonable permitting for energy projects should be sped up, and that local communities should decide which energy installations they accept.5
  • Scott Wiener CA-11
    His campaign website says he would reform permitting and siting delays that slow the shift to clean energy.6
  • Lateefah Simon CA-12
    Her campaign website says she would streamline permitting for energy transmission lines to speed clean energy development.7
  • Adam Gray CA-13
    His campaign website lists among his accomplishments leading Democratic negotiations on deadlines for the permitting process in the SPEED Act and being one of two Democrats to move the bill out of the House Natural Resources Committee.8
  • Sam Liccardo CA-16
    His campaign website says permitting reform is needed to expand interstate transmission lines quickly, and lists the SPEED and Reliability Act, which would speed approval of major transmission projects, among bills endorsed by Innovation for Good.9,10
  • Ro Khanna CA-17
    His campaign website says he would speed up permitting for transmission lines, with early community input.11
  • David G. Valadao CA-22
    His campaign website says red tape and frivolous lawsuits are blocking development of U.S. energy resources, and supports expanding domestic energy production, including oil and natural gas as well as solar and hydropower in California.12
  • Sam Gallucci CA-26
    His campaign website calls for streamlining permits for domestic energy production and power grid upgrades to lower utility bills.13
  • Scott Peters CA-50
    His campaign website says he wants to speed up clean energy projects, and lists a 2018 law he wrote giving hydropower projects more time to get permitted.14,15
  • Jeff Hurd CO-3
    His campaign website says permitting and regulatory reform are necessary to speed up both traditional and low-carbon energy development.16
  • Lauren Boebert CO-4
    Her campaign website lists among her accomplishments House passage of bills to lengthen drilling permits from two years to four and to speed up permitting for major infrastructure.17
  • Eric Mulder CO Governor
    His campaign website says he would eliminate unnecessary permitting delays, have state agencies identify permitting requirements not set by law and recommend which to drop or simplify, create a single application point for energy projects, and simplify permitting for transmission lines.18
  • Luke Bronin CT-1
    His campaign website calls for modernizing permitting and cutting red tape so energy, housing and infrastructure can be built faster and more cheaply.19,20,21
  • Michael Ted Goldstein CT-4
    His campaign website says federal policy has blocked natural gas pipeline capacity into New England and that he would fight for federal legislation to unblock pipeline expansion.22
  • Kat Cammack FL-3
    Her campaign website says she supported permitting reform, including the SPEED Act, which it says would shorten review timelines under the National Environmental Policy Act so that energy production and other projects are not held back.23
  • James "Jim" Kingston GA-1
    His campaign website says he supports streamlined permitting for energy projects.24
  • Ashley Hinson IA Senate
    Her campaign's affordability plan calls for more permitting reform to allow more refining capacity and domestic energy production.25
  • Sarah Zabel ID-1
    Her fiscal stewardship plan says she supports streamlining federal permitting, including reforms to the National Environmental Policy Act that cut delay and duplicative analysis without weakening substantive environmental standards.26
  • Daniel Biss IL-9
    His campaign website says he will support regulatory changes that make it easier to build new renewable energy capacity.27
  • Nikki Budzinski IL-13
    Her campaign website says she has supported the bipartisan CERTAIN Act, which it says would streamline infrastructure and energy permitting while maintaining strong standards.28
  • Andy Barr KY Senate
    His energy plan says he has introduced or supported bills to speed up permits for power plants, transmission lines and other energy infrastructure.29
  • Julia Letlow LA Senate
    Her campaign website says she would streamline federal permitting and speed up approvals of liquefied natural gas exports.30
  • Steve Scalise LA-1
    His campaign website says that on the first day of the 118th Congress he committed to lowering energy costs with the Lower Energy Costs Act, to streamlining energy production and the permitting process, and to reducing American dependence on China.31
  • Michael Echols LA-5
    His campaign website says he will work to reform the federal permitting process that delays critical infrastructure projects.32
  • Blake Miguez LA-6
    His campaign website says he will push for permitting reform that actually works.33
  • Micah Quinney Jones MA-6
    His campaign website's opportunity plan says to fix permitting bottlenecks for housing, infrastructure and business facilities by reducing duplicative federal review and setting clearer timelines for federal permitting decisions, and to update nuclear permitting timelines while maintaining safety standards.34
  • Tim Walberg MI-5
    His campaign website says that, as a member of the Natural Resources Committee, he has helped advance legislation to speed up American energy production by reforming the permitting system.35
  • Michelle Fischbach MN-7
    The record page lists voting for the Lower Energy Costs Act, which it says would increase domestic energy production and reform permitting processes.36
  • Fred Wellman MO-2
    His campaign website says he would speed up permitting so that power lines get built.37
  • Kimberly Hardy NC-7
    Her campaign website's Priorities page says she would advocate for quick, practical permitting rules for genuine clean energy projects, so that more of what residents spend on utilities stays in the area.38
  • Maggie Goodlander NH-2
    Her campaign website says she is leading bipartisan hydropower permitting legislation (H.R. 9705) that would make Army Corps of Engineers reviews consistent so that dams already in place can be modified to generate hydropower.39
  • Lily Tang Williams NH-2
    Her campaign website says she supports federal permitting reform to speed up the review of energy projects such as small modular reactors, natural gas infrastructure and power transmission.40
  • Larry E Marker NM Senate
    His campaign website says he would introduce legislation requiring federal agencies to decide on permits to drill on federal land within a set time, with a permit treated as approved if the agency misses the deadline.41
  • Afzal "Bobby" Khan NV-1
    His campaign website says he supports simplified permitting, set timelines and predictable rules so energy projects can proceed faster.42
  • Vivek Ramaswamy OH Governor
    His campaign website says he would expand natural gas production, streamline energy project permits and remove unnecessary regulations so projects are built on time.43
  • Stacy Garrity PA Governor
    Her campaign website says that on her first day she would lift what it calls a ban on new drilling sites and call a special legislative session to fast-track permits for natural gas production, pipelines and power plants, with firm timelines for approvals.44
  • Annie Andrews SC Senate
    Her affordability plan says she would work with both parties to cut red tape that makes it harder to build new energy infrastructure.45
  • James Talarico TX Senate
    His campaign website says he would streamline permitting for energy projects without weakening environmental protections.46
  • Tom Tiffany WI Governor
    His campaign website says he would sign legislation restoring local control over where large wind and solar projects are built.47
  • Eric Barlow WY Governor
    His campaign website says he voted to streamline permitting so that Wyoming values and community interests, rather than federal agencies, shape decisions on energy projects.48
  • Rebecca Bextel WY Governor
    Her campaign website says she would direct state agencies to set firm, transparent permitting timelines for energy production and remove unnecessary delays.49

§3Related bills

Why this matters: Bills from 2023–2026 that bear on this issue, with how Congress handled them.