California AG Bonta Co-Leads Nine-State Letter Warning Permitting Reform Draft Would Weaken State Environmental Authority
OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta has co-led a multistate coalition in a letter to the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the Energy and Natural Resources Committee expressing substantial concerns about the draft Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act of 2026, the California Department of Justice said on October 22. Bonta co-led the letter with Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell and Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Vermont, Oregon and Maine.
The draft bill, introduced by a bipartisan group of lawmakers, is a wide-ranging package aimed at lowering energy costs, creating jobs and promoting clean energy, and would transform energy permitting and infrastructure approvals. The letter commends those goals but says some provisions, without amendment, would intrude on states' rights, harm critical resources, and undermine the significant authority states hold under the Clean Water Act and the National Historic Preservation Act; state participation in National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act processes would also be affected.
"Building a clean energy future is a team effort that requires everyone — Republican and Democrat — to step off the sidelines. While the goals of the bill are noble, the legislation as drafted would undermine progress by reducing state authority to safeguard our resources and communities," Bonta said. The coalition said it will continue engaging with lawmakers on the bill's details to ensure appropriate environmental and public health protections. (GSM, based on the California Attorney General's October 22 release)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：加州总检察长 Rob Bonta（左）与州长纽森（右）2025 年出席公开活动（资料图）。照片：加州州长办公室，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / California Attorney General Rob Bonta (left) with Governor Gavin Newsom at a 2025 public event (file photo). Photo: Office of the Governor of California, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
