Senate Democrat Sees Permitting Deal Amid Committee Conflicts

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee ranking member Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) envisions a bipartisan permitting overhaul success, even as he objects to how Chairman Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is running the panel.

Heinrich and Lee are negotiating one piece of a package that aims to streamline federal environmental permitting reviews to get energy and infrastructure projects up and running faster. The committee’s biggest lift is revamping how to permit long-distance transmission lines, which is the main ask from Democrats in negotiations.

“I’m still optimistic, and those conversations have been constructive,” Heinrich told reporters, though he declined to comment on when ...