California is struggling to approve permits even for “green” projects like solar and wind energy — and even under a formally “streamlined” process that was meant to accelerate projects that help fight climate change. [emphasis, links added]
Politico reports that California’s new process under a 2022 law, which was meant to limit permitting to 270 days, has been completely ineffective, as local opposition is still able to delay “green” projects for many years.
Politico reported Sunday:
A wind power farm in the mountains of far-Northern California was the first through the door of a new permit streamlining program that came with a lofty promise to renewable energy developers: Once a permit application was complete, the California Energy Commission would make a final ruling on the project within 270 days.
It’s been more than 650 days since Fountain Wind completed its application. But the agency still hasn’t made a final ruling, after fierce local opposition successfully derailed the permit review.
…
[Governor Gavin] Newsom spokesperson Daniel Villasenor did not respond directly to questions about the Fountain Wind project, but touted the governor’s renewable energy record in a statement.
Earlier this year, left-wing commentator Ezra Klein highlighted the problem of blue-state governance in his book Abundance, noting that Democrats’ embrace of bureaucracy and diversity slowed down their policies.
The problem, this author noted, is that the book “repeats the central mistake of liberalism under the Democratic Party, which is to presume that the role of government is to move the country towards utopia.”
Read more at Breitbart
