Permitting Reform Could Be A Historic Win Waiting For President Trump

America needs a faster, simpler permitting process to stay competitive, and President Donald Trump has a historic opportunity to deliver it.

Across the country, families are facing higher energy bills. Critical infrastructure projects are indefinitely stalled. Domestic mining proposals are tied up in litigation. Manufacturers looking to reshore supply chains cannot secure timely approvals to build. The common denominator in all of these instances is a federal permitting system that has become too slow, too unpredictable, and too easy to weaponize.

President Trump has consistently championed American energy leadership and economic strength. By working with Congress to pass bipartisan permitting reform, he can turn that agenda into lasting structural change that benefits every sector of the economy.

Too often, energy production and transmission projects languish for years in redundant reviews and endless court challenges. Critical infrastructure sits in procedural limbo. Strategic mining projects essential to national security stall before ground is ever broken. Transmission lines needed to keep electricity reliable and affordable are delayed indefinitely.

As a result, Americans have been unable to fully benefit from our nation’s vast energy resources. The current federal permitting system is undermining American prosperity.

Energy demand is accelerating at a pace not seen in decades. The resurgence of American manufacturing, growth in advanced computing, and electrification across all sectors of the economy are all driving record electricity consumption. The rise of artificial intelligence alone is reshaping the demand curve. Data centers require enormous amounts of reliable, around-the-clock power.

America cannot lead in AI, advanced manufacturing or next-generation technologies without reliable energy infrastructure. That begins with a permitting system that is efficient and predictable.

Permitting reform is not about weakening environmental protections. It’s about restoring accountability and timelines. Projects should receive rigorous review, but they should not face endless delay.

Capital goes where regulatory risk is clear and manageable. When approvals stretch on for a decade and litigation is a never-ending threat, investment goes elsewhere. Improving federal permitting would create jobs, reduce financing costs and provide businesses with the certainty required for long-term investment.

Importantly, permitting reform benefits every form of domestic energy production. It accelerates oil and gas development. It enables nuclear expansion. It unlocks critical mineral mining. It facilitates construction of the transmission infrastructure that moves electricity to homes, factories and data centers. There is no policy reason for such reforms to become trapped in partisan crossfire.

The national security implications here are equally urgent. The United States remains import-reliant for many critical mineralsessential to defense systems, semiconductors, batteries and grid infrastructure. A broken permitting process strands domestic resources while geopolitical competitors dominate processing and supply chains. Strategic resilience requires the ability to build at home.

There is bipartisan recognition in Congress that the current system is not working. Modernization proposals would establish enforceable review timelines, reduce duplicative analysis, improve interagency coordination, and curb abuse of the judicial process. These are pragmatic reforms designed to restore balance and trust in the system.

Most importantly, permitting reform is popular. Americans consistently support faster permitting for energy and infrastructurewhen framed around lower prices, stronger supply chains, and national security. There is also broad agreement that America should build more here at home.

But political windows do not stay open indefinitely.

Permitting reform should not be held hostage by unrelated policy fights. Every month of delay means additional stalled projects, higher financing costs, constrained supply and upward pressure on prices.

President Trump has already demonstrated his willingness to pursue pro-growth policies—cutting taxes, promoting domestic production and advancing American energy dominance. Securing bipartisan permitting reform before the midterm elections would stand as one of the most consequential economic and national security achievements of his second term.

It would signal that Washington can still function. It would reinforce American competitiveness. And it would ensure that the United States has the infrastructure necessary to power its economy, strengthen its security, and lead globally.

If President Trump gets permitting reform across the finish line, he will achieve something that has eluded administrations of both parties for decades and secure a historic win for both his presidency and the country.