Everyone in Washington right now is talking about affordability. It’s the buzzword in every campaign promise and political speech, but for many Coloradans it’s simply a new label for a very old problem. Families across Colorado don’t need a government report to tell them what bites them in the pocketbook every time they pay a bill or swipe a credit card. Housing costs are high. Insurance is up. Food is more expensive. And for too many households, wages haven’t kept pace. 

And, then there’s energy.  

Embedded in all the products or services on which we rely is the cost of energy. Energy isn’t something you toss into a shopping cart, but it is necessary to produce, manufacture, and transport all the things that touch nearly every part of our daily lives. It powers our homes, fuels our small businesses, irrigates our farms and anchors our growing tech and manufacturing sectors. When energy prices rise, everything else follows. And while global markets and inflation play a role, Washington’s regulatory uncertainty has for years now been a primary driving force behind higher energy costs. 

Accordingly, permitting reform and the certainty that comes with it must be a priority to restore economic strength and protect American consumers. 

When energy projects like natural gas pipelines, transmission lines, geothermal facilities or renewable generation are stuck for years in duplicative reviews and litigation, developers price that risk into the final product. Delays translate to higher financing costs, and shifting regulatory standards mean projects are redesigned or abandoned altogether midstream. 

Higher utility bills are all too familiar to Colorado families. For example, the average monthly electricity bill for residential customers of Xcel Energy, the state’s largest utility supplier, has increased more than 88% in just the last seven years.  

Behind these increases is a simple reality: uncertainty costs money. 

Testifying before Congress recently, Dustin Meyer, senior vice president at the American Petroleum Institute underscored this point, arguing that permitting certainty is essential to fulfilling the rapidly increasing demand for affordable, reliable energy. “When infrastructure projects are delayed or constrained, costs go up and the system loses its ability to respond to market needs,” Meyer testified. “Put simply, our current permitting system obstructs necessary infrastructure projects, and consumers pay the price.” He’s right! 

If politicians were serious about affordability relief by lowering energy costs, a good place to start would be reforming the National Environmental Policy Act, NEPA. In 1970 President Nixon signed NEPA into law with the best of intentions and much fanfare. But, over the many decades since it has morphed into a litigation cudgel by various anti-any-kind-of-energy activist organizations.  

“NEPA is overwhelmingly used by public interest groups to stop useful infrastructure from being built,” according to a report published by the non-partisan Institute for Progress (IFP), a Washington, DC think tank. Perhaps contrary to public perception, so-called clean energy has been targeted as much or even more than fossil fuels. The IFP report highlighted data showing that nearly 3X as many Dept. of Energy active reviews (EAs and EISs) are for clean energy projects versus fossil fuels. “NEPA proceedings have held up on-shore wind, congestion pricing, offshore wind farms, solar farms, geothermal power plants, transmission lines, and mining permits for lithium and copper,” according to the report. 

So, desperately needed permitting reform isn’t about favoring one fuel source over another; it’s about creating a stable, predictable framework where all forms of energy can effectively compete. 

Colorado’s economy depends on that principle. Energy development has long supported tens of thousands of well-paying jobs in our state and contributes billions of dollars in state and local revenue, funding schools, roads and first responders. At the same time, Colorado is a leader in wind and solar generation, ranked among the top ten in our nation. However, projects cannot move forward if they are stuck in a permitting process that takes longer than the actual construction, especially with some energy projects taking an average of 4 ½ -6 ½  years before environmental reviews reach a final decision. 

Permitting reform is not contrary to environmental stewardship. Colorado understands the value of our public lands, our air, and especially our water. It is about setting clear timelines, reducing duplicative agency reviews, and ensuring that once a project meets established standards, it can proceed without extraneous delay. 

Affordability and certainty go hand in hand. When businesses know the rules and can rely on consistent enforcement, they invest. When investment flows, supply increases. The opposite is also true: inconsistent and slow regulatory processes discourage investment, constrain supply, and, ultimately, drive up costs.  

Small manufacturers in places like Pueblo and Grand Junction, and from Colorado Springs to Fort Collins, cannot simply pass along every increase in operating costs without losing competitiveness. Farmers on both the Eastern Plains and the Western Slope depend on affordable power to pump and irrigate. For agriculture, this is more than just another policy debate; it is survival. 

There actually is a glimmer of hope coming from Washington. A small bi-partisan band of noble souls in Congress branding themselves as the Problem Solvers Caucus has developed a framework for permitting reform legislation, and they are working hard to build momentum and support. 

Gabe Evans, a Republican from Colorado’s 8th District is a leader of the effort. “This framework meets the moment for much-needed change…By cutting through red tape, we can meet energy demand, lower costs, strengthen national security, and create high-quality jobs in America, while being responsible stewards of the environment and maintaining our position of global leadership and not cede ground to China,” Evans said.  

Joining Evans to lead the permitting reform effort is Scott Peters, a southern California Democrat. “America faces a choice between cheap, abundant energy from all of the above sources or higher energy prices,” Peters argues. “We need to update our environmental laws to meet the challenges of today and invest in a grid for this century.” 

Politicians in both parties talk endlessly about affordability, but it’s time to initiate real reform. If Washington is serious about coming up with solutions, it must focus on the policies that actually shape costs. In practice, this means modernizing the National Environmental Policy Act process, setting reasonable timelines for federal reviews, and limiting unnecessary litigation. 

Permitting certainty won’t solve every affordability challenge, but it’s a necessary step toward restoring the kind of economic stability Coloradans deserve. 

Bob Beauprez represented Colorado’s 7th District in the United States Congress from 2003-2007, where he served on the Ways and Means Committee.