The U.S. House of Representatives has voted 213 to 184 to pass legislation aimed at speeding up federal permitting for interstate natural gas pipelines.
The bill would designate the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as the lead agency for pipeline permitting reviews.
Advertisement
Under the legislation, FERC would be allowed to consider water quality assessments as part of its environmental review, rather than waiting for separate Clean Water Act certifications from states.
Supporters say state-level certifications have often delayed pipeline approvals for years.
The bill is titled the Improving Interagency Coordination for Pipeline Reviews Act.
Advertisement
It is one of several measures in Congress that aim to accelerate federal permitting processes.
Another bill, the Promoting Efficient Review for Modern Infrastructure Today Act, also passed the House with bipartisan support.
Lawmakers have made broad permitting reform a priority as they seek to expand energy infrastructure to meet rising electricity demand.
Advertisement
That demand has grown in part due to the rapid expansion of data centers across the country.
Supporters of the legislation also argue that faster permitting could help reduce household energy costs, particularly by enabling quicker construction of energy projects that can increase supply and competition in the market.
The agency has approved most natural gas pipeline proposals that have come before it recently.
The Trump administration has been aggressively working on this.
FERC proposed sweeping reforms to its blanket permitting process for natural gas facilities.
These changes allow companies to construct certain pipelines and related facilities without needing case-by-case Commission authorization.
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) significantly broadens the types and sizes of projects eligible under the blanket certificate program and raises cost limits to unlock greater investment and faster development.
FERC also extended the deadline for projects using temporary regulatory waivers on cost limits to May 31, 2028 (one year beyond the prior cutoff).
This provides industry certainty while permanent rules are finalized.
The reforms aim to cut red tape, accelerate construction of critical infrastructure, and support affordable, reliable energy.
Advertisement
On the same day, FERC revised its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures for more efficient permitting.
This was directed by President Trump’s Executive Order 14154 (“Unleashing American Energy,” issued January 20, 2025), which prioritizes energy dominance through streamlined reviews.
FERC also waived Order No. 871 (which had delayed construction authorizations while rehearing requests were pending) and moved toward its permanent repeal, while temporarily raising cost thresholds for modifications without full certificates.
A closely related recent action came from the U.S. Department of Energy on July 23, 2026.
Advertisement
DOE announced up to $65.5 million in cost-shared funding for research, development, and deployment projects to advance domestic oil and natural gas production and delivery.
The funding supports technologies that maximize stranded or underutilized resources (including converting flared or contaminated gas), improve infrastructure efficiency and reliability, and strengthen the supply chain.
It explicitly advances Trump’s “Unleashing American Energy” executive order.
These steps build on earlier Trump administration actions, including the April 2026 Defense Production Act determination classifying natural gas transmission, processing, storage, and LNG capacity as essential to national defense (authorizing DOE financial incentives) and the lifting of prior restrictions on LNG exports.
Overall production and LNG exports have reached or are projected to hit record levels under the Trump administration’s energy dominance agenda.
Advertisement
President Trump tore into Iran on Friday following Iranian missile attacks on U.S. forces (intercepted in Jordan) and after a brief pause in fighting.
“We’re going to be hitting them very hard, because it’s our turn to hit them. They know it’s coming. They’re asking us not to do it, but you know they tried shooting at [us] last night… So it’s our turn… and we’ll see if we get there with an agreement at some point. But we’re going to hit them very hard,” Trump said.
“They’ve already apologized, but you know, we’ve got to smack them a little bit,” the president added.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
