Permitting reform bills in 2026: where each one stands
The House passed the SPEED Act on December 18, 2025, and it has sat in Senate Environment and Public Works since[1]. S. 5653 comes from the chairs and ranking members of the two Senate committees that handle permitting: Capito and Whitehouse, Lee and Heinrich[8][9][10]. Congress.gov records no action on it after its referral[2].
Much has changed without either bill. The 2023 Fiscal Responsibility Act set deadlines and page limits[5], a 2025 law added a fee for a shorter schedule[6], CEQ removed its regulations[11], and Seven County told courts to defer on scope[12].
SPEED Act vs. S. 5653: the NEPA reform provisions side by side
Read from the bill text on November 4, 2026; either bill can change before a vote[3][4]. Both tell courts to defer to agencies. They differ most on which effects an agency studies, and where suits are filed.
| Provision | NEPA today | SPEED Act | S. 5653 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deadline to sue | No NEPA limit; six years by default[13] | 150 days after the action is public | 150 days after the authorization is public |
| Who can sue | NEPA sets no rule | Commenters on that subject, with direct harm | Commenters who raised the issue, alleging direct harm |
| Which court | NEPA sets no rule | No change for NEPA claims | Court of appeals for the project's circuit, exclusively |
| If a court finds a flaw | Court decides; a deficient EIS need not mean vacatur[12] | Remand only, 180-day fix; approval stays in effect | Remand only, 180-day fix; work may continue |
| Effects to study | Reasonably foreseeable effects[14]; courts defer on scope[12] | Only effects proximately caused; none separate in time or place | Keeps reasonably foreseeable; adds no proximate-cause test |
| New research | New research only if essential and not unreasonably costly[15] | Can ignore research published after the application or notice of intent | Can ignore research published after the notice of intent or decision to prepare |
| EA and EIS deadlines | EA 1 year, EIS 2 years; extend in consultation with applicant[16] | Same; final action within 30 days; extensions need applicant approval | Same; FONSI in 7 days, ROD in 45; extensions need sponsor approval |
| Reusing earlier work | Section 109 CE adoption[17]; programmatic reliance for 5 years[18] | Rely on earlier documents for the same action; programmatic 10 years | Combine CEs; CEQ keeps a public CE record; programmatic 10 years |
| Federal funding | Excludes minimal funding and low-control financial assistance[19] | Funding alone cannot make a major federal action | Excludes low-control grants and projects with only a federal loan |
What S. 5653 changes beyond NEPA
The SPEED Act amends NEPA alone[3]. S. 5653 also rewrites the reviews that run alongside it[4]:
- ESA section 7: 60-day consultation, not 90; applicant consent past 100 days, not 150[20]
- Section 106: if a SHPO misses a 30-day response, the agency moves to its determination[21]
- Section 404: general permit terms grow from 5 to 10 years; EPA's veto narrows to the application period[22]
- Section 401: certifying authorities may deny only on clear and convincing evidence about water quality
What this means for a NEPA document you're writing now
Nothing changes until a bill passes; your agency's current procedures still govern[7]. Under S. 5653, agencies would get 180 days after enactment to update them[4]. These records help under current law and would matter more under either bill[3]:
- Comment log: both tie lawsuits to who raised what, so record each comment by issue and date
- Research dates: record when each study was published against your application and notice of intent
- Purpose and need: both would write the sponsor's goals into it, so state them plainly
- State review: both let a lead agency rely on a CEQA-style state review it finds similar in function