Rep. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) recently introduced an amendment to the Promoting New Manufacturing Act that would require new natural gas facilities to use the best available emissions control systems.
The Promoting New Manufacturing Act would streamline the process for companies to meet environmental requirements to attain pre-construction permits for new facilities and would also make the process more transparent.
Under the measure, the EPA would be required to provide more timely guidance to help the engineers of new projects comply with changing regulations and air quality standards that impact pre-construction permit applications.
EPA would also have to report to Congress on what is being done to expedite the approval process.
Cassidy’s amendment aims to build more bipartisan support for the bill by ensuring that new facilities are modernized with up-to-date technology to ensure air quality and public health.
“Families are struggling, and America’s natural gas can create jobs,” Cassidy said. “As an example, in Louisiana, construction projects worth $90 billion and tens of thousands of jobs have been announced.”
There are 66 projects on queue in Louisiana with an estimated $112 billion in new projects related to natural gas planned across the country over the next five years.
“Excessive EPA regulations threaten these jobs,” Cassidy said. “The Cassidy Amendment eliminates EPA red tape. We should roll out the red carpet for these jobs, not the red tape.”