The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Jan. 21 held a markup of eleven bills related to the Clean Air Act (CAA), hydropower licensing, and emergency communications.
APPA sent a letter to the committee in advance of the markup supporting H.R. 161, the New Source Review Permitting Improvement Act, and H.R. 2072, a bill that would allow the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to extend a hydropower license for an additional six years in three increments of two years.
H.R. 2072: To require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the time period during which licensees are required to commence construction of certain hydropower projects
The committee passed H.R. 2072 by a unanimous vote of 44-0, bipartisan legislation introduced by Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) that would allow the FERC to grant additional time for certain hydropower projects to begin construction if they were licensed before March 13, 2020.
In remarks, Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH) said hydropower is a vital part of the country’s energy mix.
Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA) said that, while he is a cosponsor of the legislation, there needs to be clarification about congressional intent to avoid future misunderstandings of the legislation by FERC.
He said the legislation is meant to provide FERC with authority and discretion about hydropower licenses, and not write project developers a “blank check.”
Rep. Ruiz said extensions in licensing and construction timelines should only be granted by FERC when warranted, on a case-by-case basis, and with careful consideration of environmental impacts and local concerns.
Rep Cliff Bentz (R-OR) spoke in support of the legislation and noted two projects in his district that would benefit from this legislation, the Mason Dam project and the Swan Lake Closed Loop Pumped Storage project. Rep. Kim Schrier (D-WA) called the legislation pragmatic and simple, and urged her colleagues in the Senate to also consider her legislation, H.R. 3657, the Hydropower Licensing Transparency Act, which passed the full House in July of last year. Rep. Schrier also stressed how critical hydropower licensing reform, generally, is to ensuring grid reliability and affordability.
H.R. 2072 would allow FERC to extend a hydropower project license for a maximum of six years, broken into a maximum of three, two-year extensions. Current law requires hydropower projects to commence construction within 10 years of receiving a license. The legislation would also allow for licenses to be reinstated retroactively if they expired between December 31, 2023, and the date that the legislation becomes law. If reinstated, the project becomes eligible for the aforementioned extension periods.
H.R. 161: New Source Review Permitting Improvement Act
The committee passed H.R. 161 by a party-line vote of 28-23.
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-VA), spoke about the provisions changing the scope of the definition of “modification” in the NSR permitting process to make it easier for facilities to install the best available emissions-reduction equipment.
The bill would also exempt certain efficiency, safety, and reliability upgrades for new and existing sources unless they result in a significant increase in emissions. He also introduced an amendment that added legislative text defining “actual construction” activities for the purposes of applying for a Clean Air Act permit. The amendment passed the committee by voice vote.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it intends to initiate a rulemaking on the definition of beginning “actual construction” this year, piggybacking on guidance the agency issued in 2025 that supported Maricopa County Air Quality Department's decision to allow the construction of a core shell building, tool hookup, and mechanical, electrical, and process piping without a Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit.
In the letter of support to the committee, APPA did not take a position on defining “actual construction,” while remaining supportive of the bill's goals to reform the NSR permitting process.
Other CAA Legislation Considered
The following CAA legislation passed along party lines:
• H.R. 4214, the Clean Air and Building Infrastructure Improvement Act by Rep. Rick Allen (R-GA), would amend the CAA to:
o Promote the timely issuance of regulations and guidance for implementing new or revised NAAQS;
o Require the EPA to publish regulations and guidance for NAAQs standards concurrently, including details on preconstruction permit applications under new or revised standards;
o Update the rules for construction, which would not remove obligations for installing the Best Available Control Technology or Lowest Achievable Emission Rate; and
o Give state, local, and tribal governments the authority to implement stricter emissions requirements than federal standards.
• H.R. 4218, the Clean Air and Economic Advance Reform (CLEAR) Act by Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA), would modify the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) program by:
o Extending the review cycle for NAAQs from five to ten years;
o Considering the likelihood of attainability of standards as a secondary factor when setting or revising NAAQS;
o Giving states additional time to correct deficient State Implementation Plans before the federal government imposes a Federal Implementation Plan;
o Providing flexibility for ozone nonattainment areas;
o Adding exemptions for activities that mitigate wildfire risk; and
o Changing the Scientific Advisory Committee to bring more state representation and require consideration of adverse public health, welfare, social, economic, or energy effects when advising on standards.
• H.R. 6387, the Fire Improvement and Reforming Exceptional Events (FIRE) Act by Rep. Gabe Evans (R-CO), would update CAA regulations for handling air quality monitoring data, including actions that mitigate wildfire risk, under an expanded definition of exceptional events.
• H.R. 6398, the Reducing and Eliminating Duplicative Environmental Regulations (RED Tape) Act by Rep. John Joyce (R-PA), would:
o Simplify the EPA’s review requirements for newly authorized federal construction projects, major federal agency actions subject to the National Environmental Policy Act, and proposed regulations from other federal agencies; and
o Focus EPA’s review efforts on proposed legislation to reduce duplicative oversight.
• H.R. 6409, Foreign Emissions and Nonattainment Clarification for Economic Stability (FENCES) Act by Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX), would modify the CAA to exclude emissions emanating outside of the United States from being used to determine whether an area is attaining NAAQS standards.
