The Big, Beautiful Bill and National Environmental Policy Act
On July 4, 2025, Congress passed the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB). The law includes several provisions that may impact cooperatives, including:
- Direct Pay continued: Maintains the elective payment (Direct Pay) option for solar and energy storage projects.
- Battery Storage tax credits extended: Extends tax credits for battery storage through 2033, followed by a 25% annual phaseout until full expiration in 2036.
- FEOC ban: Prohibits solar, wind, and other projects from using components (such as inverters) sourced from Foreign Entities of Concern (FEOC), specifically China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea.
Changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
OBBB and associated actions have added changes to NEPA, including:
- The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) now oversees a streamlined NEPA review process with deadlines:
- Environmental Assessments (EA): 180-day deadline.
- Environmental Impact Statements (EIS): 1-year deadline.
- New page limits were also added to expedite the review process:
- EIS: 150-page limit.
- EA: 75-page limit.
- Optional fast-track review:
- Project sponsors can pay 125% of the estimated cost to receive an accelerated NEPA review from CEQ.
Agency Specific Adjustments
Federal agencies are updating NEPA processes to align with OBBB changes:
- USDA is streamlining approvals for projects co-located in development zones.
- DOE is seeking to move NEPA out of statute, giving it more flexibility to apply Categorical Exclusions for low-impact projects.
Related resources:
- BEL’s NEPA summary memo for cooperatives
- DOE NEPA Rulemaking (2025) | Department of Energy (comments due August 5)
