Rudy Yakym: “The National Environmental Policy Act, NEPA, was created to balance environmental protection with our need to build…”

“The National Environmental Policy Act, NEPA, was created to balance environmental protection with our need to build infrastructure. The NEPA process was once timely and concise, but over time NEPA has become a four-letter word associated with frivolous litigation, mountains of paperwork, project delays, and cost overruns. Congress has taken meaningful bipartisan steps toward reform, but the work is far from over. My amendment would require the Council on Environmental Quality to report on current NEPA bottlenecks. It mirrors the legislation I introduced yesterday with my friend Jimmy Panetta, the Studying NEPA's Impact on Projects Act, which would require annual reporting on NEPA litigation, average page length, and timeliness. The American people deserve a government that does not give radicals a heckler's veto over roads, bridges, and energy projects. I thank the chair and ranking member for including the Yakym-Panetta amendment in this en bloc. I urge my colleagues to support it.”