BLOOMBERG • November 25, 2022
President Biden says the Inflation Reduction Act, which contains some $370 billion in climate spending, represents the most sweeping government investment in clean energy “ever, ever, ever.” To ensure that investment is worthwhile, he’ll need an equally unprecedented overhaul of federal rules and regulations. Congress should make such reforms a top priority. Building anything in the U.S. requires navigating a rainforest of red tape. A primary impediment is the National Environmental Policy Act, which requires federally funded projects to undergo a laborious environmental-review process. Green-energy projects have been no exception. Wind, hydropower, geothermal, solar, nuclear: However desirable such endeavors may be – even to the government itself – they’re no match for the sheer obstructive power of state and federal rulebooks.