HR6373-119

What This Bill Does

The Air Permitting Improvements to Protect National Security Act amends Clean Air Act section 173, which governs permits for major stationary sources in nonattainment areas. Upon application by an owner or operator of a new or modified advanced manufacturing facility or critical mineral facility, the President may waive all or part of an emissions-offset requirement if the President determines that the waiver is in the national security interest of the United States. The President may not delegate that determination.

The bill also creates alternative offset rules for these facilities. A state permitting authority must allow a new or modified major stationary source that is an advanced manufacturing facility or critical mineral facility to offset emissions through alternative or innovative means if the source demonstrates it used all reasonable means to obtain offsets, all available offsets are being used, and sufficient offsets are not available. The state may impose an alternative measure to offset emissions above permitted levels or, instead, impose an emissions fee no greater than 1.5 times the average cost of stationary-source control measures adopted in that area during the previous three years. The state must use the fees to maximize emissions reductions in the area. Advanced manufacturing facilities are semiconductor or semiconductor-equipment manufacturing facilities; critical mineral facilities extract, process, refine, or mill critical minerals designated by the Secretary of the Interior.

Who Benefits and How

Semiconductor manufacturers benefit because unavailable emissions offsets would no longer automatically block new or modified facilities if national security or alternative-offset conditions are met. Semiconductor equipment manufacturers benefit from the same waiver and alternative-offset routes. Critical mineral extraction companies benefit when mines or processing facilities cannot obtain enough traditional offsets. Critical mineral refining facilities benefit from the ability to use state-approved alternative measures or capped fees. State economic-development officials benefit if permitting flexibility helps attract national-security manufacturing projects. Defense supply-chain planners benefit if domestic semiconductor and critical-mineral capacity becomes easier to permit.

Who Bears the Burden and How

State environmental permitting authorities must assess offset availability, approve alternative measures, calculate capped emissions fees, and spend fees to maximize local emissions reductions. EPA air-permitting staff may need to oversee state implementation and nonattainment permitting consistency. The President must personally make any national-security waiver determination. Communities near new advanced manufacturing facilities may face higher local emissions if offsets are waived or replaced with alternative measures. Environmental advocacy organizations must monitor facility-specific demonstrations and fee-funded mitigation rather than relying on traditional offset requirements.

Key Provisions

• Authorizes a nondelegable presidential national-security waiver of Clean Air Act emissions-offset requirements.
• Covers semiconductor manufacturing facilities and semiconductor-equipment manufacturing facilities.
• Covers critical mineral extraction, processing, refining, and milling facilities.
• Requires state permitting authorities to allow alternative or innovative offset means when sufficient offsets are unavailable.
• Provides for alternative measures or emissions fees capped at 1.5 times recent stationary-source control costs.
• Requires states to use emissions fees to maximize emissions reductions in the affected area.