§ 15952 - Federal-State regulatory coordination and assistance

CHAPTER 149— NATIONAL ENERGY POLICY AND PROGRAMS › SUBCHAPTER III— OIL AND GAS

(a) At the request of the Governor of a State, the Administrator may enter into a refinery permitting cooperative agreement with the State, under which each party to the agreement identifies steps, including timelines, that it will take to streamline the consideration of Federal and State environmental permits for a new refinery.

(b) The Administrator shall be authorized to—

(b)(1) accept from a refiner a consolidated application for all permits required from the Environmental Protection Agency, to the extent consistent with other applicable law;

(b)(2) enter into memoranda of agreement with other Federal agencies to coordinate consideration of refinery applications and permits among Federal agencies; and

(b)(3) enter into memoranda of agreement with a State, under which Federal and State review of refinery permit applications will be coordinated and concurrently considered, to the extent practicable.

(c) The Administrator is authorized to provide financial assistance to State governments to facilitate the hiring of additional personnel with expertise in fields relevant to consideration of refinery permits.

(d) The Administrator is authorized to provide technical, legal, or other assistance to State governments to facilitate their review of applications to build new refineries.