Gov. Mark Gordon was joined in the capitol by Emily Domenech, Director of The Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the federal agency to speed-up infrastructure projects in the state.
According to a press release, this MOU aligns state and federal permitting timelines and will help large projects get permitted "in a more efficient and timely manner."
"I'm really excited because I think the relationship that we're going to put together today will prove mutually beneficial, because it will help make sure that our environmental reviews, the federal environmental reviews, are done expeditiously," said Gordon at the signing.
The agreement also allows Wyoming permitting actions to be added to the Federal Infrastructure Projects Permitting Dashboard, which includes a map showing all projects being tracked in every state.
"Too long we kind of have been operating permitting like a relay race where we take our turns to do that work," said Domenech. "Now we're going to do it all at the same time, and we're going to show the public we're cooperating as we do it."
The MOU fact sheet lines out commitments between Wyoming and the agency, stating;
- the Permitting Council will:
- Help the state determine FAST-41 eligibility and identify suitable projects;
- Coordinate with the state to identify and support gaps in Federal knowledge and experience that the state can advise upon;
- Explore opportunities to improve state permitting processes, to include providing funding and access to technology designed to streamline permit applications; and
- Attend and convene meetings with appropriate state and federal agencies to ensure streamlined and coordinated review and avoid duplication of efforts.
- the state will:
- Commit to aligning permitting timelines for all state actions for FAST-41 projects to complete no later than the expected completion date for the final federal action for those projects;
- Formally opt in to the requirements of FAST-41 on all priority projects identified within the state;
- Identify state permits commonly required for priority projects eligible for FAST- 41 coverage;
- Work with the Permitting Council Executive Director to identify local permitting challenges and develop strategies to facilitate solutions for potential delays;
- Engage in regular meetings with the Permitting Council to assess future project potential.
FAST-41 stands for Topic 41 of the 2015 Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act.
Projects the council are coordinating in the state include the Bear Lodge Rare Earth project in Crook County and the Seminoe Pumped Storage Project in Carbon County.
Wyoming is the 10th state to enter into the federal partnership.
Republished with permission from Wyoming News Now, a TV news outlet covering the Cheyenne and Casper areas.
