Political Quotes

“Hydropower is one of the few carbon-free energy sources that provides a steady baseload of electricity. Producing more electricity from hydropower helps us meet our clean energy goals and reduce harmful emissions that pollute our air and water. This bill, the Hydropower Permit Extension Act, would cut red tape for hydropower construction permits and incentivize greater investment in this energy source. The act gives already approved hydropower projects an extra year on their initial permit and allows FERC to grant a 4-year extension to projects that are delayed from breaking ground during their initial permit. And as the gentlewoman from Colorado (Ms. DeGette) said, right now this takes an act of Congress to extend construction permits for hydropower projects, even though they have gone through a rigorous environmental regulatory process. Moving forward, the ultimate solution to unlocking hydropower is to streamline the regulatory process. It is my hope that we can continue to have bipartisan, productive conversations like these on how to get hydropower projects moving, how to get them approved more quickly, while still meeting high environmental standards. I want to thank Chairman Walden and Ranking Member Pallone, Chairman Upton and Ranking Member Rush, for working with me and the committee to advance this bill through the committee and to the floor. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill.”