Jared Huffman: “Mr. Chairman, we have heard over and over again in this debate that this bill is not about lowering environmental…”

“Mr. Chairman, we have heard over and over again in this debate that this bill is not about lowering environmental standards. This is another one of those rather remarkable inversions, when you actually look at what the bill does. Entire classes of projects are simply eliminated from environmental review. Entire classes of impacts no longer count in an environmental review under this proposed legislation. Certain types of comments that allow people to take part in the public review process and potentially challenge a project are no longer qualifying for them to be part of the public review and legal challenge process. If that is not lowering environmental standards, I don't know what is. Another aspect of this bill should be considered specifically: allowing broad exemptions for grants, loans, and other financial assistance, which this bill does. It means that large, federally backed projects could avoid triggering a NEPA review, even when those impacts could be very significant. This includes projects like many Federal highways, which were one of the original reasons that NEPA was passed, because they often ran right through disadvantaged communities. Those communities didn't even know about the proposed projects, let alone have the ability to require consideration of environmental impacts.”