Congressman Nick Langworthy Introduces Infrastructure Project Acceleration Act, Legislation Critical in Cutting Red Tape to Ensure Micron’s Success in New York

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Nick Langworthy (NY-23) today introduced the Infrastructure Project Acceleration Act, a targeted bill to streamline environmental review processes for critical manufacturing projects-particularly in states like New York with already rigorous environmental standards. Congressman Langworthy is joined by Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) as the co-lead on the legislation.

The Infrastructure Project Acceleration Actaims to reduce delays in the construction of major manufacturing projects by allowing an exemption from the federal National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process for projects in states with environmental standards that are equally or more stringent than NEPA. This exemption would apply to a small number of states-New York, California, and Massachusetts-that already enforce comprehensive environmental review systems.

"Bureaucratic red tape is the enemy of economic growth and job creation,"said Congressman Nick Langworthy."New York is notorious for having some of the most stringent environmental regulations in the nation and the last thing we should be doing is making companies go through an additional review process that would lead to an indistinguishable outcome. By simply streamlining duplicative reviews, this bill will ensure that companies like Micron and other manufacturers avoid unnecessary construction delays and ensures the long-term success of these much-needed investments in Upstate New York."

The Infrastructure Project Acceleration Actwould include a key exemption in the Building Chips in America Actif projects are undergoing an equivalent or more stringent state environmental review process. This new authority would still give the lead agency the ability to ensure that critical environmental protections have been thoroughly considered before expediting the NEPA process and would cover only three states with exceedingly stringent environmental reviews - New York, Massachusetts, and California.

Despite the permitting provisions included in the Building Chips in America Act, which was signed into law last Congress, Micron and other manufacturers are still facing duplicative environmental reviews by having to undergo a federal environmental review process along with a state-level process that is just as stringent. For Micron under this law, in its review process for the four-fab project in Central New York, they are now the only semiconductor company that must undergo an environmental impact statement, while other semiconductor companies must only complete environmental assessments.

Micron is the only semiconductor company that this uniquely impacts given the project's location in New York, which has one of the most stringent environmental processes. Replicating such a process on the federal level will substantially impact Micron's construction timeline the ultimate success of a key project for brining chips manufacturing to Upstate New York.

"We need to do everything we can in Congress to remove the bureaucratic red tape that is holding our nation's manufacturing sector back, especially when it comes to the vital semiconductor industry," said Rep. Mike Collins. "I want to thank Rep. Langworthy for introducing the Infrastructure Project Acceleration Act, which stops duplicative environmental regulations from slowing down the progress our economy needs while jumpstarting the domestic microchip industry."

This legislation is co-led by Rep. Mike Collins (GA-10) and cosponsored by Rep. Claudia Tenney (NY-24), Rep. Josh Riley (NY-19), Rep. Michael Lawler (NY-17), Rep. John Mannion (NY-22), and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11).

"Reinvesting in America's manufacturing sector is a key aspect of restoring our economy under President Trump. Yet states like New York are imposing burdensome regulations on manufacturing, slowing progress and the creation of jobs. The Infrastructure Project Acceleration Act simplifies New York's onerous environmental review process to allow Micron to avoid a lengthy construction timeline and support this critical investment in Upstate New York,"said Congresswoman Tenney.

"New York State is at the forefront of the semiconductor industry, and increasing our domestic production capacity is a national security priority,"said Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17). "The Infrastructure Project Acceleration Act will help ensure critical projects move forward efficiently while maintaining New York's high environmental standards. By aligning state and federal processes, we're supporting the continued growth of innovation and job creation in New York and across the country."

Representative John W. Mannion (NY-22) said,"Micron's historic investment in Central New York is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform our region's economy and secure America's place as a global leader in semiconductor manufacturing. The bipartisan Infrastructure Project Acceleration Act will keep New York competitive, improve efficiency, and expedite important environmental reviews so we can quickly move forward and create thousands of good-paying jobs. I'm proud to be a cosponsor and I thank Rep. Langworthy and other members of the New York State delegation for their partnership in advancing this legislation."

This bill will support economic development projects like Micron and grow the semiconductor ecosystem in New York.

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