WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is taking action to clear the way and speed up development of a wide range of commercial projects by cutting back federal review of their impact on the environment.
President Trump says the country cannot compete and prosper "if a bureaucratic system holds us back from building what we need.”
The changes would reduce the number of projects requiring federal oversight of the environmental impact before they could go forward.
Democratic lawmakers and environmental groups say the changes will exempt polluters from public scrutiny of their projects.
In a statement emailed to KTVB and other media outlets Thursday afternoon, Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho) calls the changes "improvements that are critical to the prosperity of our rural communities."
National Environmental Policy Act regulations, Fulcher's statement continues, "often provide unnecessary and lengthy delays in the permitting process that add costs and disrupt projects in Idaho. Improving and shortening the NEPA process will decrease wildfire risk, widen highways in Idaho, and bring jobs to communities near federal land without sacrificing the environment."
The Center for Environmental Quality is the agency that would implement the proposed rule changes, which have not yet been finalized. A public comment period is now open, and continues into February.
