While work on the continuing resolution (CR) continues, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) continues to negotiate whether permitting reforms should be included on the short-term spending bill that’s expected to fund the government through mid-December. The decision has prompted pushback from more than 70 House members, including many progressives, and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont). For now, it’s uncertain if Democratic opposition to the permitting reforms would be sufficient to sink a CR altogether. Although 76 House members have expressed their opposition, they have not indicated whether they would block the bill if it was put on the floor. Depending on how many lawmakers are willing to vote down the bill in the lower chamber, there could be enough Republican support to make up for those losses. Similarly in the Senate, Republican support could neutralize Sanders’s vote in opposition. It’s also possible that progressive pressure affects the final legislative text of the permitting reform, which has yet to be released. In a letter sent to both Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) last week, House lawmakers argue Manchin’s reforms would make it easier to greenlight harmful oil and gas projects and reduce constituents’ abilities to oppose such endeavors. Additionally, they claim that attaching the policies to a must-pass bill would force lawmakers to choose between “protecting … communities from further pollution or funding the government.” While the legislative text for the proposed reforms is still being finalized, a memo that Manchin’s office circulated earlier this year has many Democrats and activists worried. Policies outlined in that memo would put a two-year cap on environmental reviews by the government for major projects under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Currently, there is no cap on how long these reviews can take, flexibility that some activists and Democrats say is important to ensure that the communities affected have time to submit their input and have those concerns be properly evaluated. On average, a current NEPA review takes 4.5 years, according to the Council on Environmental Quality.
For today, the Senate reconvened at 10:00 A.M. and continued work on the nomination of Lara E. Montecalvo to be United States Circuit Judge for the First Circuit. The Senate is also expected to take up the Motion to invoke cloture on the nomination of Sarah A. L. Merriam to be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit.
The House convened at 10:00 A.M. and is working on H.R. 2988 – Whistleblower Protection Improvement Act of 2021 as well as H.R. 8326 – Ensuring a Fair and Accurate Census Act.
The House is also expected to consider up to thirteen bills under suspension of the Rules.
