March 11, 2020

Chair DeFazio Blasts CEQ on Trump Administration’s Attempt to Undermine Nation’s Bedrock Environmental Laws

Washington, D.C. — Chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR) sent a letter to the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) opposing the Trump administration’s proposed rule to fundamentally re-write the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations.

“I write in strong opposition to the Council on Environmental Quality’s (CEQ) proposed rule to fundamentally re-write the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations. I urge you to reconsider and withdraw the proposal. In particular, I am concerned about the short comment period and limited public engagement given the broad scope of the proposed changes. In addition, the proposal to remove the requirement that Federal agencies account for cumulative environmental impacts and indirect effects is short-sighted and fails to protect Americans from the public health and economic impacts of climate change. Finally, the proposal fails to address the true source of delay in permitting infrastructure: lack of money.,” said Chair DeFazio

Chair DeFazio pointed to proposed changes that will result in climate change no longer being considered a potential environmental impact as one of the reasons this plan should not move forward.

To read the full letter, click here.