This piece originally appeared at Green Tape.
Reconciliation has sucked the air out of the room over the last several months, and with good reason. But while most of the energy policy world has been fighting over tax credits, negotiations over several other infrastructure packages have gotten underway. The most important of these is the surface transportation reauthorization bill, or the “highway bill.”
The highway bill is a must-pass legislative vehicle. With the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s highway authorities set to expire next year, Congressional leadership has already started piecing together a new package, making it the most realistic home for a near-term permitting deal.
With the highway bill as the target vehicle, the goal of this piece is twofold: first, to stake out some initial positions that negotiations might begin from; and second, to build out a simple, workable framework for pursuing permitting reform.
