A ‘golden opportunity’ or ‘fatally-flawed’: Colorado environmental groups sound the alarm on federal permitting reform, raising concerns about development on public lands

A bill overhauling federal permitting processes is making its way through the U.S. Senate, pushing solutions to many agreed-upon problems like high energy costs, climate change and an overloaded electric grid. But others warn that some of the provisions could impact local and tribal input on federal permitting as well as prioritize and lock in development projects for mining, oil and gas and data centers on public lands. The 417-page bill — known as the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act of 2026 or BAAJA — proposes significant changes to how the federal government reviews and approves energy, infrastructure and development projects including on public lands. It would substantially change a number of federal laws, including the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act and National Historic Preservation Act — offering revisions that aim to make development easier and faster.

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