The federal panel overseeing historic preservation rules voted Friday to rewrite the regulations guiding federal agencies as they consider how proposed projects could affect historic and cultural sites, a move that has already complicated bipartisan permitting reform talks on Capitol Hill.
The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation’s proposed changes to regulations implementing the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) seek to narrow the scope of what properties are considered historic, make public comment periods optional and limit the scope of consultation with Native American tribes.
The proposed changes could make energy development on public lands easier at a time when demand for power is surging across the country. Critics say that the new rules would allow agencies to speed ahead on projects that may endanger cultural sites without doing sufficient outreach, from President Donald Trump’s pet projects in the nation’s capital to erecting transmission lines.
Congressional Democrats, while talking with Republicans about a potential overhaul of permitting for energy projects last week, raised concerns about the council’s proposal as a draft became public.
