Ricketts Advocates for Reduction in Permitting Red Tape, Making Government Work

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Yesterday, during a Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) highlighted his efforts to reduce bureaucratic red tape and make government work.

“When I was governor of Nebraska, I actually implemented Lean Six Sigma as part of our overall strategy in government — but it worked very well with streamlining our processes in permitting,” said Ricketts.  “Our air construction permits were 110 steps long.  We cut it down to 22 steps and were able to cut the time from 198 days down to 65 days.  So, I think there’s an opportunity here as well to be able to streamline what we’re doing in permitting in a lot of ways that don’t impact any sort of environmental standards.”

“Nebraskans from across all industries, especially if you’re thinking about construction, transportation, agriculture, have all advocated for common sense reform to our permitting process.  Because it does take too long,” said Ricketts.  “Every single industry benefits from efficient and predictable regulation.  Efficient, predictable regulatory frameworks drive down costs.”

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Senator Ricketts’ comments were made during a Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works hearing entitled: “Improving the Federal Environmental Review and Permitting Processes, Part II.”  The witnesses were Brendan Bechtel, Chair of the Smart Regulation Committee, Business Roundtable;Brent Booker, General President, Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA); Dustin Meyer, Senior Vice President of Policy, Economics and Regulatory Affairs, American Petroleum Institute; Abigail Ross Hopper, President and CEO, Solar Energy Industries Association; David S. Terry, President, National Association of State Energy Officials.