Democrats' Rejection of Permit Streamlining Resolution Doesn't Bode Well for Joe Manchin's 'Side Deal'
The West Virginia senator conditioned his support for the Inflation Reduction Act on reforming federal environmental review laws. His Senate colleagues don't seem so hot on the idea.
With yea votes from centrist Sens. Joe Manchin (D–W.V.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D–Ariz.), the U.S. Senate narrowly passed the $740 billion Inflation Reduction Act on Sunday before adjourning for its August recess.
Manchin had conditioned his support for the bill on a "side deal" that would streamline the federal permitting process for new infrastructure projects. But the near-unanimous Democratic rejection of a similar, GOP-backed permit streamlining measure last week suggests that Manchin's co-partisans might not honor that bargain when they return to work in September.
On Thursday afternoon, the Senate voted 50–47 to approve a Congressional Review Act resolution sponsored by Sen. Dan Sullivan (R–Alaska) that would undo the Biden administration's regulatory changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Sullivan's bill would reinstate the more permissive rules adopted in the waning days of the Trump administration.
NEPA is the 50-year-old law that requires federal agencies to examine the environmental impacts of their actions—whether to fund a new road or permit a new power plant—with 600-page or longer studies that take years to complete.
Republicans have long criticized the law for gumming up needed federal sign-offs on both private and public projects. A growing number of Democrats and climate-conscious liberals also see NEPA as an obstacle to building out things like renewable, low-carbon energy infrastructure.
That includes Manchin, who was the only Democrat to vote for the Republicans' resolution. His permit streamlining side deal also proposes a number of fixes and updates to NEPA to speed the environmental review process along. But Democrats in Congress and the White House seem split, expressing commitment to the West Virginia senator's side deal while also defending the Biden administration's tightening of NEPA rules.
During Thursday's Senate floor debate on the CRA resolution, Sen. Tom Carper (D–Del.) said he fought for the modest permitting reforms included in the bipartisan infrastructure that passed last year. But he also described NEPA as a "bedrock environmental protection" and Biden's regulations as a "narrow, targeted change."
Ben Lieberman, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, argues that the Biden NEPA changes were neither targeted nor narrow. They brought back a requirement that agencies consider direct, indirect, and cumulative effects of projects when reviewing them, which supporters have argued is necessary to account for climate change in NEPA review.
The Trump administration tried to narrow this requirement to only considering effects that have a "reasonably close causal relationship" to the project itself, which Lieberman contends is "what NEPA was all about."
"Whether it's a new pipeline or a new factory or a new hydroelectric facility, you look at the environmental impacts of that facility," he says.
Having passed the Senate, Republicans' CRA resolution now heads to the Democrat-controlled House, which Politico reports is unlikely to pass it. Even if it did, President Joe Biden would almost certainly veto the undoing of his own regulations.
We'll see how Manchin's effort goes. But Democrats' unwillingness to support the streamlining that is actually in front of them doesn't bode well for prospects of NEPA reform.
Rent Free is a weekly newsletter from Christian Britschgi on urbanism and the fight for less regulation, more housing, more property rights, and more freedom in America's cities.
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“I’ll gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today” never works out well for the person providing the hamburger.
Especially when it involves a promise from the democrats.
Ask the Gipper.
Or the frog (after carrying the scorpion).
I heard the original meanings of both “Manchin” and “Sinema” was “whore for sale”
also everybody knew Manchin was getting rolled on the permit thing last week before there was even voting. dude’s an idiot for selling so low
He’s not. He was told that he was going to get inline or there would be consequences, and they offered him a fig leaf to cover his shame. He, and anyone else paying attention, knows it is for show only- a plausible denial for him to bring back to his constituents back home. “They promised me, gosh durn it!”
Don’t disrupt the kayfabe!
What do you think team (D) could do to Manchin that would threaten his career and status? If they disown him, how hard would it be for him to join team (R)?
Nope, he’s a moron that got rolled for nothing and sold out a country he purports to love. Hope he doesn’t have kids/grandkids to pay for his failure.
Eh. Whatever. As long as Biden and the Democrats keep the borders open so the cost-effective foreign-born labor keeps flowing and Reason.com’s benefactor Charles Koch keeps getting richer, I don’t really care what happens with trivial side deals.
#ImmigrationAboveAll
#LibertariansForBiden
Your consistency makes me chuckle.
For me it’s just how he nails how the partisans act, where as long as their desired outcome is achieved, they really don’t care about consequences, intended or otherwise.
Joe Manchin is 75 years old and dead man walking in 24. He knows with Biden being the most incompetent and unpopular President in living memory that his Senate career is done. So, he doesn’t care about these side deals or anything else. He just wants his bribe and to retire with his millions.
Simenea figures that she has a good chance of getting within the margin of fraud in Arizona and is willing to go along to get the benefit of the Mericopa County fraud machine to stay in office.
Robert Byrd was 92 when he left office upon his death and the Pork King. I’m doubtful Manchin gets his walking orders.
Byrd never did this to the state. Also, Byrd was elected back when there was such a thing as a white middle class Democrat. Different world now. Manchin is done and knows it. That is why he took the bribe and cashed in.
Do enviros know that clever conservatives could use NEPA reviews to block and delay, almost infinitely, new wind and solar farms and other “vital infrastructure projects” (like hi speed trains and light rail)?
Why do so few activists realize that legislation could be used against them? Who will protect you from the “Trumpista fascists” when you’ve turned in all your “weapons of war?”
They don’t think that will happen. I can’t blame them for thinking that. The Right has been more or less unwilling to wage lawfare the way the left does. I think that is starting to change but I can’t blame the left for being skeptical it will.
>>The Right has been more or less unwilling to wage lawfare the way the left does.
The McConnell Gang benefits from the left’s theft just the same
How cute.
You really think the deep state will actually process a request from the right?
It will get refused three times on procedural grounds, and after meeting all those objections, will go into the same pile as all the drilling permits currently “under review”.
side deal or voter cred-fig leaf for Manchin?
The idea that Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema “changed their minds” on setting another several hundred billion dollars on fire to subsidize the businesses of left-wing donors is absurd.
Two weeks ago, these “moderates” vehemently opposed “Build Back Better” because it taxed and spent too much. Now that it’s called the “Inflation Reduction Act,” it’s game on. Anyone believe this was an honest conversion?
There is no discussion about what it took to make this change, it’s all about how this could “save” the Biden administration and will give something for leftists to get excited about in the midterms.
That’s actually true. It’s also the worst reason for any elected official to support a piece of legislation or anything. It happens a lot, but that doesn’t make it right.
These Democrats are supporting something they know will damage the economy and hurt Americans because it will rally the base of the Democrat Party and decrease their odds of losing control of Congress. How afraid of subpoenas about Hunter and the family business must the Biden administration be?
One last note: Joe Manchin has never been the decision-maker when it comes to preventing Democrats from passing a piece of legislation. For all the talk of his willingness to stand up to his party, he’s only ever sided with Republicans when something was going to happen without him – a nominee was going to be confirmed anyway or a bill passed or not.
The idea that he’s independent is a myth he created to help Democrats, so they could say, “Even Manchin is on board” to be able spin something radical as centrist. None of this is by accident.
https://townhall.com/columnists/derekhunter/2022/08/07/the-world-has-gone-crazy-n2611377
Sarc says it is the Republicans fault
Using (D) and “moderate” in the same sentence is journalistic fraud.
There is no way Manchin actually believes Dems will uphold such an agreement. He was clearly a witness to Dems pulling the same thing on Repubs only a short time ago. He just got that “concession” so he could give his constituents an excuse for why he agreed to the massive tax and spend bill.
Somebody didn’t read the parable of the scorpion and the turtle
Some of us did. 😉
https://simulationcommander.substack.com/p/the-scorpion-and-the-frog
What silly asses we are:
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/exclusive-us-send-45-billion-more-ukraine-budget-needs-2022-08-08/
The United States will provide an additional $4.5 billion to Ukraine’s government, bringing its total budgetary support since Russia’s February invasion to $8.5 billion, the U.S. Agency for International Development said on Monday.
This is my surprised face.
Reduce bureaucracy? That’s unpossible.