Washington, D.C. — Today, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) removed his Energy Independence and Security Act from the Senate’s continuing resolution to fund the government, acknowledging that it lacked the necessary support. The permitting reform bill would have forced approval of the Mountain Valley Pipeline project, and it provoked the strenuous opposition of environmental justice communities at the front lines of fossil fuel pollution. In response, Center for American Progress Senior Vice President for Energy and Environment Policy Christy Goldfuss issued the following statement:
Sen. Manchin’s bill would have made significant changes to the laws that protect our communities from dirty fossil fuels and guide the construction of clean energy. He excluded the affected communities themselves and nearly every member of Congress from the discussion. It’s no surprise, then, to see this policy lack the necessary support. Our clean energy future must be built with communities at the center, and no communities should be sacrificed for the sake of forcing through a harmful and unnecessary pipeline.
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