Witness: Arkansas permitting faster than federal process; loss of nationwide permits would harm electric co-ops

At a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing, a witness representing electric cooperatives said state-level permitting in Arkansas moves faster and with clearer communication than federal permitting and warned that failure to reauthorize nationwide permits would be "detrimental. Very detrimental."

The witness praised the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, saying the agency has delegated authority for Clean Water Act Section 401 and provides predictable timelines: "If they tell me it's gonna be 60 days, I get it in 60 days," the witness said. By contrast, the witness described working with federal agencies on Section 404 permits as involving "generally poor communication or ignored communication" and characterized the experience as a "run around" that does not treat project timelines as meaningful.

Why it matters: Nationwide permits and streamlined state-administered processes are used for routine, time-sensitive work such as transmission-line maintenance, right-of-way clearing and post-storm repairs. The witness told the committee that requiring full federal review for tasks that now fit under nationwide permits would delay needed maintenance and recovery work.

Committee questioning and witness examples: In response to a committee member's comparison question, the witness said experiences with state regulators were uniformly positive across several states: "I've worked with Oklahoma. Great. Worked with Missouri DNR. I've worked with Iowa DNR. I've had great experiences with all those state agencies." The witness also noted that while state regulators issue challenging requirements at times, the relationship is a partnership: "They're my regulator. Yes, they tell me I have to do things that are like, you know, it's hard to do. Sure. But there's a partnership."

On the consequences of not reauthorizing nationwide permitting, the witness said: "It would be it would be detrimental. Very detrimental. I mean, there's a lot of things we do under nationwide permits, right? Transmission line maintenance right away clearing, recovering from storms." The witness added that some projects legitimately need the full federal review, but many do not and would suffer if the nationwide-permit framework disappeared.

No formal action was taken during the exchange. The committee member concluded the questioning by yielding back the floor.

Ending: The hearing transcript does not specify next steps on legislation or formal votes related to nationwide permits or Clean Water Act reauthorization.