Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Manufacturing and electric co‑op leaders tell Congress permitting delays raise costs and threaten projects
Summary
Executives from Nucor and Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corporation told a House subcommittee that unclear permitting processes, duplicated reviews and prolonged timelines have delayed projects, driven up costs and can pass expenses to ratepayers. Witnesses urged clearer timelines, better agency coordination and expanded state roles to speed work
Industry and utility witnesses told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Feb. 11 that permitting uncertainty under the Clean Water Act and overlapping federal reviews are delaying projects, raising costs and discouraging investment.
Noah Hanners, executive vice president at Nucor Corporation, described the company's planned sheet mill in Apple Grove, West Virginia, saying the project — originally planned as a $3.5 billion investment — faced "onerous" permitting that required coordination with multiple federal agencies "with little direction and unclear timelines." Hanners said the project will employ roughly 800 full‑time manufacturing jobs at the mill, about 2,000 contracting…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
