S.Amdt. 5945

The amendment proposed by Mr. Armstrong, titled the American Energy and Mineral Infrastructure Act of 2026, aims to add a new division to the bill to streamline and accelerate the approval process for energy and mineral projects.

Its primary purposes are:

• Natural Gas Pipeline Coordination: It makes the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Commission) the only lead agency for environmental reviews of natural gas pipelines. It sets strict deadlines for participating agencies to respond and requires the Commission to track and publicize the progress of authorizations on its website.

• Water Quality and Permitting: It modifies the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to limit the power of States and agencies to deny or condition water quality certifications. It introduces "clear and convincing evidence" standards for denials and sets a one-year limit for agencies to act on certification requests, after which the requirement is deemed waived.

• Dredged and Fill Material: It creates nationwide permits for "linear infrastructure projects" and "linear pipeline projects" based on specific acreage thresholds. It also extends the term of general permits from five to 10 years.

• Hardrock Mining: It allows proprietors of lode or placer claims to locate multiple mill site claims (up to 5 acres each) for waste and tailings disposal and establishes an Abandoned Hardrock Mine Fund using claim maintenance fees.

• NEPA Reforms: It amends the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to define it as a purely procedural statute that does not mandate specific environmental outcomes. It limits the scope of environmental reviews to effects with a "reasonably close causal relationship" to the project and restricts judicial remedies to remand without vacatur or injunction.